The inaugural Farming Expo takes place at the start of October so we caught up with Farmstrong Scotland Chairman, John Scott, to find out what he will be speaking about during a special seminar on wellbeing.
Farming, as we know, faces many challenges from the weather to farm gate prices, political changes and recruiting staff, alongside day-to-day activity such as pressures during lambing, calving and harvest.
Like many other farmers and crofters, I haven’t historically been good at looking after myself, and face highs and lows. We consistently demand more of our bodies and minds and wonder why every now and again why we lack energy, struggle with decisions, and have no desire to plan for the future.
Fostering personal resilience to deal with these challenges starts with your own wellbeing, the steps you can take to change how you feel, impacting how you then act. And it doesn’t need to be big. The smaller steps are some of the most powerful for helping you “live well, to farm and croft well”.
One of best things I do is “connect”, one of the key five wellbeing steps I will be touching on during the Farming Expo. When I feel myself getting a bit low, I reach out to friends, and they step in to lift my spirits.
Through Farmstrong Scotland, a new wellbeing initiative, we are building a peer-to-peer network so together we can share our own stories, listen, or simply attend a social event, and get some time away from the farm or croft.
Our work will develop tools using knowledge from practical farming and science-based studies, whilst also signposting anyone who may need further support to other charities and health professionals.
Our industry is changing and whilst it’s important our businesses evolve, we mustn’t forget about our most important asset, ourselves.
