Ep. 137 - What Will You Do With This Moment?

Lindsay Brandon, CEO and Permaculture Consultant at Permaculture Canada joins me to share about Armagarden, her new project to integrate community design into the permaculture design.We discuss Armagarden and how it contrasts with the usual permaculture design. From the website:What is Armagarden?Armagarden was born from the desire to get back to the land and live a lifestyle that is connected to family, place and community. Through strategic design methods considerations are made through the design process towards food/water security, community resource management, and holistic design from a community perspective. With the recent increase in people desiring a homesteading lifestyle many realise that self-reliance is best when combined with the skills of their community. That we are stronger, more resilient, and can accomplish much more when we pool our resources, talents and skills together.The community resilience is created with elements including food production, on-site (off-grid) energy production, infrastructure for community events, educational courses and sustainable construction and energy efficiency practices for all buildings.Episode website: Ep. 141 - Armagarden - Regenerative Community Design, with Lindsay BrandonSponsors:Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest. Now taking orders for shipping in Sept/Oct.Permies digital marketplace is YOUR source for all things permaculture for your homestead, side hustle, and designing your intentional life: from video courses, to blueprints, to books.

With tough times, more people are looking for homestead property, or to add gardens, fruit and nut trees, and chickens to their existing suburban property to be more self sufficient.Kerry Brown of Strong Roots Resources joins me to share tips to find your homestead property:Look for off-market properties. Properties are selling before they show up in Zillow or MLS. Contact your network of folks, like realtors to give you a heads up when something is coming available. If you are in the Tennessee area, Kerry recommends Marcie and Jeff Yadon. On FB as on fb as Marcie n Jeff Yadon or email: [email protected] CommunitiesSome have a membership model or you can live there seasonally.FB Group - Homestead RoommatesTSP Land Group on TelegramPermies SKIP program on Permies.comWhat to consider when looking at a property:Water sourceAccessSolar aspectForaging and trees - what is on there now?Suburban tips:Look at space and think of "what else could that be used for?" (stack functions)Avoid HOAsDon't discount garage space (like for aquaculture).Episode website: Ep. 140 - Tips to Find Your Homestead Property - with Kerry BrownSponsors:Permies digital marketplace is YOUR source for all things permaculture for your homestead, side hustle, and designing your intentional life: from video courses, to blueprints, to books.Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest. Now taking orders for shipping in Sept/Oct.

Last time, in Ep. 138, Jason Thomas shared stories and we discussed how to design your intentional life.We talked about the main categories - wealth, health, relationships, and spirituality.I was contemplating my journey to design my intentional life and I had more to add.Having an Intentional Life means:Aligning your life and actions with your values, as much as possible.Being deliberate in your actions and forming good habits.Taking positive steps rather than being driven by your circumstances and surroundings.Preparing for adversity - both physically and mentally.Being more at peace and having a positive view of your future.Focusing on your physical and spiritual health.Write down your values.Evaluate things to Change:Make a plan. Start simple.There are no solutions, only tradeoffs. You won't get to 100% (unless you are very lucky, or you have the right situations). There will be some tradeoffs.It's not All or Nothing.Get out of the "I am going to replace my job!" mindset.Redesign your life by changing your lifestyle and expectations:Paul Wheaton's (in)famous "Story of Ferd and Gert"Get out of the "progressive mindset"Grow your own food.Find your tribe - Grow community.Episode website: Ep. 139 - More Tips to Design Your Intentional LifeSponsors:Permies digital marketplace is YOUR source for all things permaculture for your homestead, side hustle, and designing your intentional life: from video courses, to blueprints, to books.Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest. Now taking orders for shipping in Sept/Oct.

What does your perfect day look like? Does today look like that perfect day?In this episode, Jason Thomas of Regeneration Nation Costa Rica shares foundational steps to design your intentional life.Needs most people have:WealthHealthRelationshipsSpiritualityWhat does your perfect day look like?We also discuss how to apply permaculture principles to your business or side hustle.Check out Jason's FREE e-book: 77 Ways to Practice Permaculture Professionally. (some may surprise you)Episode website: Ep. 138 - Jason Thomas on How to Design Your Intentional LifeSponsors:Permaculture Business Design Course from Regeneration Nation Costa Rica - This course will guide you step-by-step toward designing a profession that cultivates your permaculture education into a regenerative livelihood.Permies digital marketplace is YOUR source for all things permaculture for your homestead, side hustle, and designing your intentional life: from video courses, to blueprints, to books.Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest. Now taking orders for shipping in Sept/Oct.

It's been a crazy week. The assassination attempt on Trump.Now a Global cyberattack (“no, it was just a bad patch!”)What will you do with this moment?Focus on your local Circle of Influence and Circle of ConcernPlant treesCultivate gardensRaise livestockPrepare mentally and spirituallyGrow your local communityBecause Gov’t will not save you.Episode website: Ep. 137 - What Will You Make of This Moment?Sponsors:Permies Permaculture Design Course - 70 hours of videos for $50. Watch what topic that you want to learn for your homestead (water, swales, ponds, earthworks) - without taking a week off of work or getting a certificate.Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest. Now taking orders for shipping in Sept/Oct.

My friend Kevin Brubaker from Dallas Media Productions, an independent film producer in Dallas, joins me to talk about LLC Tips (and lots of film stuff).What does a film producer have to do with my usual content of homesteading? It fits into creating side hustles and businesses to Design Your Intentional Life.We were having a conversation about LLCs and we decided to record it. We also talk a lot about film. How can you make money on film production in the streaming era?We dove into these topics:Should you have an LLC for each project or side hustle?Should you wait to become profitable before forming an LLC?Do you have to be profitable after 3 years to be considered legit (or bear the wrath of the IRS)?Should I spin Grow Nut Trees into its own LLC?To answer these questions, you have to ask yourself - why have an LLC?Although you want to use an LLC to offset your expenses, an LLC is mainly to protect you in a hyper-suing culture that we are currently in. If I was sued (for some reason) on trees, I would lose all my businesses, including the podcast.Tips:It is recommended that you have an LLC for each project or side hustle.You do not have to be profitable after 3 years if you are showing growth and an "intent to make a profit".Make sure that you create an LLC in a state where the application and charge is one-time only. (some states require yearly renewal). I have mine in KS (cost me $166). Kevin has his in TX and cost about $150. You can create the LLC and get an EIN on the state website - you don't need a lawyer or Legal Zoom.Find a mentor.Disclaimer: This is not tax or financials advice. Discuss with your tax or financial planner for your situation.Episode website: Ep. 134 - Surprising Small Business LLC TipsJoin the mailing list and our Telegram group and you can keep up to date with all of Grant Payne, Homestead Padre, and my homesteading projects. Signup at https://Signup.ThrivingtheFuture.comIf you like this content and the podcast, here is how you can support the podcast and my Thriving empire of side hustles:Shoot me a tip on Venmo or CashApp @ThrivingtheFuture.​Go to the Stuff page on Thriving the Future site and buy something.OR - click on one of the Amazon links on the Stuff page and then buy your other stuff that you want. Anything you buy on Amazon for 24 hours will give Thriving the Future a credit.Sponsors:Grow Nut Trees: Buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. Seeds and trees have “memory”. They thrived and reproduced in a certain climate.Often when you buy chestnut trees, seeds, or plants online, you have to buy from nurseries in the Northeast or Southeast US, or the Pacific Northwest.Take it from us, trees and plants grown in those climates do not do well in Kansas.So buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. At GrowNutTrees.com.

Jeremy is better known as DeweyLikeDonuts on Instagram and TikTok.We start his story in 2008 and how a SHTF can be your own personal apocalypse. He turned to "raising chickens, growing his own food, and striving for a more sustainable life" (his tagline).Prepping to Thrive rather than survive. Not living in fear.He shares about is recent adventures with a bee swarm.How he grew his Instagram account with a chicken video that went viral.And what is the "Internet in a Box"?Episode website: Ep. 133 - Striving for a More Sustainable Life - with DeweyLikeDonutsJoin the mailing list and our Telegram group and you can keep up to date with all of Grant Payne, Homestead Padre, and my homesteading projects. Signup at https://Signup.ThrivingtheFuture.comIf you like this content and the podcast, here is how you can support the podcast and my Thriving empire of side hustles:Shoot me a tip on Venmo or CashApp @ThrivingtheFuture.​Go to the Stuff page on Thriving the Future site and buy something.OR - click on one of the Amazon links on the Stuff page and then buy your other stuff that you want. Anything you buy on Amazon for 24 hours will give Thriving the Future a credit.Sponsors:Check out the Solar Food Dehydrator. Watch the movie, get the plans, all for a reasonable cost.Grow Nut Trees: Buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. Seeds and trees have “memory”. They thrived and reproduced in a certain climate.Often when you buy chestnut trees, seeds, or plants online, you have to buy from nurseries in the Northeast or Southeast US, or the Pacific Northwest.Take it from us, trees and plants grown in those climates do not do well in Kansas.So buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. At GrowNutTrees.com.

Part of Thriving is embracing both the wins, as well as the losses.Homestead Update:My Spring garden has failed, for the most part.I usually sow plants and then spread lettuce and kale seed around to act as a cover crop - hey, lettuce is a companion plant of everything.This year hardly anything came up. The starter plants that I planted also did not thrive.Why? Lots of rain.In Kansas we do not get "April showers bring May flowers."We get May and June thunderstorms. Almost all of our annual rain comes in May and June.This year it rained almost every other day in May. We even had a mini-tornado pass just south of us and we got 8-10 inches of rain that week. Should have been a Spring bonanza of crops.I added a couple of truckloads of compost from the nursery. The compost is worse-than-usual municipal compost.The perennials saved the day - plantain, walking onion, bloody dock sorrel. They all did wonderfully.Some trees thrived. Some did not.My apple grafts are all thriving. Nearly 80% success so far, which is rare.But the chestnut seedlings from last year didn't come out of dormancy. The 5 year chestnut trees are looking sickly, with half the branches with no leaves. I need to heavily fertilize and see if they recover.Side Hustle Update on GrowNutTrees.I sold hundreds of $ of elderberry on FB marketplace.I am adding black lace elderberry for next Fall and in 2025.Episode website: Ep. 132 - Never Give Up, Never SurrenderIf you like this content and the podcast, here is how you can support the podcast and my Thriving empire of side hustles:Shoot me a tip on Venmo or CashApp @ThrivingtheFuture.​Go to the Stuff page on Thriving the Future site and buy something.OR - click on one of the Amazon links on the Stuff page and then buy your other stuff that you want. Anything you buy on Amazon for 24 hours will give Thriving the Future a credit.Sponsors:Check out the Solar Food Dehydrator. Watch the movie, get the plans, all for a reasonable cost.Grow Nut Trees: Buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. Seeds and trees have “memory”. They thrived and reproduced in a certain climate.Often when you buy chestnut trees, seeds, or plants online, you have to buy from nurseries in the Northeast or Southeast US, or the Pacific Northwest.Take it from us, trees and plants grown in those climates do not do well in Kansas.So buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. At GrowNutTrees.com.

Enough talk. Get Stuff Done. It's Proof of Work.Grant Payne and Matt Derosier share what Stuff they are Getting Done this Spring, as well as Side Hustle and Tree Nursery tips.Hear why "The IBC King is Back":Grant's weddingGrant added MANY chickens and ducksTurkey production - if you start now will they be ready to sell for Thanksgiving?Tree nursery tipsHedge production by coppicing.Grant Payne - PayneHomestead on TwitterMatt at FarmHopLifeEpisode website: Ep. 131 - Get Stuff Done - with Grant and MattIf you like this content, shoot us a tip on Venmo or Cashapp @ThrivingtheFutureSponsors:Check out the Solar Food Dehydrator. Watch the movie, get the plans, all for a reasonable cost.Grow Nut Trees: Buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. Seeds and trees have “memory”. They thrived and reproduced in a certain climate.Often when you buy chestnut trees, seeds, or plants online, you have to buy from nurseries in the Northeast or Southeast US, or the Pacific Northwest.Take it from us, trees and plants grown in those climates do not do well in Kansas. So buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. At GrowNutTrees.com.

Real world examples to start and then grow your side hustle.I am taking a Permaculture Business Design Course through Regeneration Nation CR. The exercises and worksheets are fantastic and have helped me to focus more on the customer.What is the problem you are trying to solve? What does your customer actually want? Are you trying to solve what you think the problem is?Example: If you are evaluating someone's land and doing a permaculture design, have you asked: "what do you like to eat?"So many people plant things that they actually don't eat, or will not likely eat.Define who your customer really is and let your customer define themselves by what they really want.Niche down and then niche down some more so you are known as an expert in that space.Quickly go to market with a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) to test the response and whether it is worth throwing money (and more importantly TIME) at.Charge less for it in a beta test. Get real world feedback.Let your customer ultimately decide if they are your customer. Don’t chase after someone who doesn’t want to be your customer.Learn skills while doing. Charge less while learning those skills, build clientele and experience, then raise your price.Become a producer and not just a consumer.Like the permaculture principle – Use your yield. It can be used to give, trade, or sell to grow your forms of capital.Don’t grift for the sake of the grift or people will easily see through you.Use research tools like Google Trends and Answer the Public.I do a deep dive on How to use Answer the Public in the latest Thriving News article on How to Overcome Writer's Block.Episode website: Ep. 130 - Tips on How to Grow Your Side HustleIf you like this content, shoot us a tip on Venmo or Cashapp @ThrivingtheFuture.Sponsors:Check out the Solar Food Dehydrator. Watch the movie, get the plans, all for reasonable cost.Grow Nut Trees: Buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. Seeds and trees have “memory”. They thrived and reproduced in a certain climate.Often when you buy chestnut trees, seeds, or plants online, you have to buy from nurseries in the Northeast or Southeast US, or the Pacific Northwest.Take it from us, trees and plants grown in those climates do not do well in Kansas. So buy Elderberry, pecan, hazelnut seedlings, and red mulberry seedlings - all adapted to the Midwest. At GrowNutTrees.com.