November 16, 2006

Manage Personal Stress to Make Better Farming and Ranching Decisions

Some of the most pressing concerns faced by farmers and ranchers in agriculture today, such as drought stress, can elevate personal stress and disrupt sound decision-making. A family science specialist at North Dakota State University urges producers and their families to think family first and to keep their current challenges in perspective.

"Drought stress and other concerns in agriculture can put persistent strain on farmers and ranchers," says Sean Brotherson, NDSU Extension Service. "However, what farmers and ranchers want to be careful about is letting their personal stresses pile up so that their management practices and decision-making become negatively affected. When you're under stress, you may communicate less with others, become more disjointed in your thinking and make decisions based on anxiety or anger."

To assist individuals and families to think through and make healthy personal and business decisions in times of stress, Brotherson has authored an Extension publication on making family decisions in farming and ranching. The publication outlines strategies, such as clarifying your values and goals, identifying available resources, evaluating costs and benefits, and understanding decision-making styles that may affect you.

"It's helpful to have a process to work through as you are making decisions that affect your bottom line or your family security," Brotherson says. "This makes it possible to reduce stress and increase the quality of your decision-making. This is important because your decisions affect all farm or ranch operations. They also determine the quality of your personal life and family relationships."

Some of the ideas outlined by Brotherson in "Making Family Decisions in Farming and Ranching”:

• Identify key values important to your well-being, your families or your farm or ranch operation. Discuss these values and then develop goals that are specific and clear, and will guide your family and business decision-making.
• Identify personal and interpersonal resources, such as creativity or communication, that can aid in your decision-making. Identify tangible, concrete resources, such as capital or equipment, that are important in your decisions. Seek ways to access or create these resources.
• Evaluate the costs and benefits involved to each member of the family or business operation in making a particular decision. Then evaluate costs and benefits to the couple or the family as a whole.
• Examine your decision-making style. Think about what decision-making process will work best for the family and the farm or ranch operation in a particular circumstance.

"Agricultural challenges, such as drought stress, place many families in North Dakota in the position of making critical decisions about farming, financial security and family well-being," Brotherson says. "Hopefully, this resource and other ideas can be helpful in making the best decisions possible for you and your family."

"Making Family Decisions in Farming and Ranching," NDSU Extension publication FS-581, can be obtained at your local Extension office or by calling (701) 231-7882.

###

Source: Sean Brotherson, (701) 231.6143, sean.brotherson@ndsu.edu
Editor: Rich Mattern, (701) 231-6136, richard.mattern@ndsu.edu

BeefTalk

Prairie Fare

Plains Folk

Hortiscope

Market Advisor:

Crop

Livestock

North Dakota State University
NDSU Agriculture Communication
NDSU Extension Service
ND Agricultural Experiment Station