Keeping Up

By Miranda Reiman

Some people dream of a cook or a maid, or perhaps a nanny or staff carpenter. I’d trade all of those for a technology manager for my family – our own personal information technology (IT) employee who could make sure I had all my photos backed up, parental controls set correctly and all the necessary updates installed. 

I’m probably a bad Millennial for saying this. It’s not that I dislike technology, but some days I feel I have enough to worry about without complicating my life further by introducing yet another change.

Then as I type those words, I wonder, “Am I becoming my mother?”

When I hear about a new time-management app, a handy way to organize my grocery list or track my finances, two thoughts come up together, “That sounds cool. How could this possibly save more time than it takes?”

Do you ever feel this way? 

A buddy starts rattling off the newest, best, greatest thing, and we feel a little bit behind. An expert talks about a new genetic tool, animal handling system or grazing strategy, and we wonder if we have the time to apply any of it. 

Sometimes it all seems just a little too overwhelming to me. I want to throw up my hands and dig my heels in. I’ll stick to what I know, thank you.

But, then there are those times I’ve been forced to change. Other times, I’m as motivated by the advantage as I am paralyzed by the unknown, so I just take the leap. 

For those of us who have made big changes that have worked for the better, we see it, too. Maybe its an investment in genomic testing or making renovations to a processing facility. We’ve seen the results in the calf crop or the time saved and better herd health after working cattle. 

Those situations remind us much good can come from change. We all inherently know we can’t just stand still and expect to thrive. 

So how do we balance it all? 

This summer a cattleman discussed his adoption of technology with me. He said he wasn’t going to be first to try the novel idea, but when there was some evidence of success, he’d be right behind those that were. 

Maybe others out there need to hear it too – we don’t have to be first. We don’t have to try every new thing, lest we be left in the dust. We need to find the ones that are most applicable and stand to do the most good.

It’s all about keeping the forward momentum going.

Next time in Black Ink, Miranda Reiman will talk about appreciating growth. Questions? E-mail nerceg@certfiedangusbeef.com.