#253: Why 80%+ of farmers quit by year 5 (and how to avoid their mistake)

Let's Meet!  Drowning in marketing dread? Book a free strategy session to see if Farm Marketing Mastery can break you out of marketing misery. This week I coached a farmer who wanted to go from $20,000 in sales to $180,000 in just one year – and it broke my heart because I could hear the crushing pressure she was putting on herself. In this eye-opening episode of The Profitable Mindset Podcast, I dive into the shocking truth about why 80% of farmers quit within the first few years. It's not because farming doesn't work or because their products aren't good enough – it's because they set themselves up for failure with completely unrealistic timelines. This shift in understanding timelines is your key to building a sustainable farm without burning out. Discover how letting go of the belief that you should be profitable faster can unlock growth, reduce pressure, and give you the peace of mind to actually focus on building something that lasts. This is the exact mindset work I teach farmers in Farm Marketing Mastery, and it's changing lives. Tune in now and start unlearning the limiting beliefs about timelines that are holding you back from farm success. In this episode: • How to calculate what revenue you actually need to replace your day job income • Why adding more products when one isn't profitable yet guarantees you'll lose money • The mindset shift that lets you build sustainably instead of burning out • Real coaching call breakdown: going from panicked about year one to excited about years three through five

Let's Meet!  Drowning in marketing dread? Book a free strategy session to see if Farm Marketing Mastery can break you out of marketing misery. This week I coached a farm couple with grass-fed beef, cooking classes, farm tours, and an Airbnb. Their website was gorgeous, content excellent, email signups happening daily. But they weren't making sales. In this episode, I reveal why brilliant farmers with beautiful websites still can't convert browsers into buyers. The shocking truth: your website isn't broken—you just haven't learned the skill of turning interested people into paying customers. You'll hear the exact email rewrite I did during our coaching call and discover "The Rule of One"—why cramming multiple offerings into one email kills your sales. The biggest mistake? Marketing from YOUR perspective instead of addressing your customers' real pain points. This shift from farmer-focused to customer-focused messaging is the key to relationship-based marketing that actually drives sales. This is the exact sales psychology I teach inside Farm Marketing Mastery, and it's transforming farm businesses.

Stuck avoiding farm marketing like it's poison? 👉 Then book a free strategy session with Rebecca or Charlotte to see if Farm Marketing Mastery can break you out of marketing misery → [SCHEDULE HERE]   Marketing feels like death? You're not the only one. 💀   One of my dairy sheep farming clients put it bluntly: "When I think of sitting down to do marketing and sales, I feel dead inside."🤦‍♀️   She had 20 sales calls gathering dust on her desk. Milk production was exploding, she had tons of product to move, yet she was paralyzed at the thought of reaching out to that long list of markets.   Here's what happened next: One 20 minute coaching session and we turned her sales work into "a complete no-brainer."   That very day, she was able to sit down and with ease make all the contacts she needed. The very next week she emailed and said sales calls are now "a complete no-brainer." 🧠   Episode 251 reveals the exact process:   Listen as I outline the 3-step framework that transforms marketing paralysis into unstoppable momentum. I walk you through her entire breakthrough—from "dead inside" to "on a roll" in days. - Discover why trying to "like" marketing is keeping you stuck - Learn my specific goal-setting system that makes overwhelming tasks feel manageable - Get my technique that brings future success into today's grind.💡   This isn't feel-good fluff. My client is now able to hire her second full-time employee while you're still avoiding your to-do list. 🚀   Stop torturing yourself with tasks that could be paying your bills. Tasks that a simple coaching call could make so easy for you.   Your animals, your farm, and YOU, need you profitable, not paralyzed. 🐄

Click HERE for Farm Marketing Mastery   Charlotte Smith addresses the #1 reason farms fail: not investing in marketing and mindset skills. After 13 years working with thousands of farmers, she's identified the 80/20 rule for success—80% mindset management, 20% marketing strategy.   Our brains are wired for survival, not success, naturally defaulting to negativity.   Farmers learn to manage this bias in our weekly mindset coaching calls.   Farmers in Charlotte's program transform their businesses in months, selling out quickly and raising prices confidently through strong customer relationships built using the simple tools she teaches.

Need help with your marketing? Join my free Farm Marketing Fix Masterclass in June Free Strategy Session: Is Farm Marketing Bootcamp Right for Your Farm? I had the chance to open up about my journey as a fifth-generation farmer and how I transformed my family's painful bankruptcy experience into what’s become my life’s calling: teaching farmers how to make money. 3 Reasons You Can’t Miss This Episode: I reveal how healing my kids gave me no choice but to make sure my farm was profitable I explain the shocking truth about food pricing that's been hidden from American consumers for decades (this will change how you shop!) I break down my simple marketing principle that eliminates guilt and creates authentic connection with customers (this works for ANY business) If you've been struggling to charge what you're worth or if you're curious about how mindset affects your bottom line, you won't want to miss this conversation.

Need help with your marketing? Join my free Farm Marketing Fix Masterclass in June Free Strategy Session: Is Farm Marketing Bootcamp Right for Your Farm? "I wasn't making money but I didn't want to raise my prices because I care about my customers so much... they're like family." That's what farmer Jena Becker confessed at the start of our latest episode. She was struggling to make her farm profitable while homeschooling eight children and considering shutting down completely. But something remarkable happened when she pushed through her fears about raising prices. In this episode, you'll discover: How Jena went from considering closing her farm to selling out her entire chicken inventory for the year The specific marketing technique that felt authentic while honoring customer relationships Why not a single customer complained about her price increases (and she actually gained new subscribers!) The "missing link" that transformed her approach to farm stress and family dynamics How to overcome the emotional hurdles of valuing your family's time and labor properly If you've ever felt stuck between needing to raise prices but fearing you'll lose loyal customers, this episode is exactly what you need. This conversation goes beyond marketing tactics - it's about creating a farm business that serves your life instead of consuming it.

Free Strategy Session: Is Farm Marketing Bootcamp Right for Your Farm? Meet with a member of our team and let's chat! I never tire of yet another email from a farmer in my Boot Camp who says, “We’re paying off our mortgage this month!” It’s becoming one of the most common testimonials I get to hear!  Today, you’ll hear it from Sally and JP who’ve farmed for 15 years — but finally became profitable and sustainable the last two, after they joined the Boot Camp and got coaching on all the struggles - marketing, business, AND the personal struggle of farming with your spouse. They’re great examples of what’s possible for you - tune in to hear how to: Run a profitable farm with your spouse (and still like each other💕) Pay off your mortgage with just your farming income💰 Create real work-life balance while running a demanding business⚖️ What makes this episode special? Sally gets brutally honest about how she and JP were constantly "bickering" while working together until they made one simple shift in how they communicate.  Coaching helped her make this small change that completely transformed their working relationship while maintaining their personal relationship. The results speak for themselves... They're paying off their mortgage THIS YEAR with their farming income. Yes, you read that right! After implementing strategic marketing, time management, and mindset shifts, Sally and JP are: Selling out their farm shares consistently Charging premium prices ($12/dozen for eggs!) Building real savings instead of "gasping at cash flow" Creating true work-life balance (no work after 4pm or on weekends) Hiring staff to support their vision This isn't about working yourself to exhaustion. Sally now blocks all time after 4pm and weekends for family, and has hired staff to support their busy, growing farm. As someone who wasn't a "natural-born marketer," Sally was hesitant to invest in business education we teach in the Boot Camp. But as she shares in this episode, that investment has paid off many times over. If you're farming with your spouse or partner and dream of creating a truly sustainable business (both financially and emotionally), this conversation will give you the blueprint. Here’s to your success, Charlotte

Need help with your marketing? Join my free Farm Marketing Fix Masterclass in June Free Strategy Session: Is Farm Marketing Bootcamp Right for Your Farm? This week I coached a farmer on shame because he wasn't making as much money as he hoped, and another farmer on shame because her seedlings all died.  In this powerful episode of The Profitable Mindset Podcast, I dive into the hidden shame that keeps farmers stuck in cycles of stress and financial struggle. You'll learn how to overcome the feeling of shame that keeps you stuck. This shift is your key to building a sustainable farm. Discover how letting go of the belief that failure and "not good enough" can unlock growth, profitability, and peace of mind. This is the exact mindset work I coach inside Farm Marketing Boot Camp, and it's changing lives. Tune in now and start unlearning the limiting beliefs that are holding you back.

Need help with your farm marketing? Join my free “Farm Marketing Fix Masterclass” in June!    Free Strategy Session: Is Farm Marketing Bootcamp Right for Your Farm?    Recently, a farmer in my coaching program wanted to quit selling beef because her slaughterhouse was so challenging to work with.   She would've lost a ton of money taking her cows to the auction.   After coaching with me, she realized that what she thought was the problem was NOT the real problem.   When I pointed out the real problem and they got to work solving it, they calmed down and are having more financial success than ever.   In this episode, you'll discover: - How this rancher almost gave up her successful grass-fed beef operation due to slaughterhouse frustrations (and what she did instead) - The real issue behind a hydroponic grower's labor problems - How rushed expansion nearly collapsed a pasture pork farm - If you've ever thought, "Just fix this ONE problem and then my farm will work" - this episode is exactly what you need.   The mindset shift will completely change how you see your farm's "problems" overnight.

Sign up for the "Farm Marketing Fix Master Class" HERE In this episode, Charlotte explores two game-changing mindset shifts for farmers: Viewing farm problems as normal features of farming, not bugs to be eliminated Learning to live with challenges while solutions develop Charlotte shares how a vegetable farmer in Connecticut transformed his approach to employees who just weren't as fast/thorough as he wanted, and how a Michigan chicken and egg producer dealt with the stress of selling out and having upset customers.