When Is Enough Enough? | John Kowalchuk

Jim expected a conversation about the differences between farming in Canada and the United States. Instead, he and central Alberta farmer John Kowalchuk kept finding the things farmers have in common. They talk about the financial pressure facing agriculture, the perpetual optimism that can make farmers resilient and sometimes get them into trouble, and what happens during those long hours alone in the tractor when productive thinking can turn into simply being stuck in your own head. The conversation eventually moves to John's years of sharing farm life on social media. Why show the broken combine along with the good crop? What responsibility comes with having an audience? Can the people following you become accountability partners? And when thousands of followers are possible, what does meaningful influence actually look like? John also explains the story behind #RegularFarmer and why being comfortable as a "regular farmer" can be harder than it sounds. That leads Jim and John into competition between farmers, farm size, success, retirement, and a question that doesn't get asked very often in agriculture: When is enough enough? Different countries. Different crops. Different governments and currencies. But maybe a regular farmer in Alberta isn't all that different from a regular farmer in northeast Indiana. Be Safe Out There!