1 00:00:02,766 --> 00:00:04,892 Speaker 1: Welcome to the Growing Our Future podcast. 2 00:00:04,892 --> 00:00:08,811 In this show, the Texas FFA Foundation will take on a 3 00:00:08,891 --> 00:00:12,663 journey of exploration into agricultural science, education, 4 00:00:12,663 --> 00:00:15,990 leadership development and insights from subject matter 5 00:00:16,071 --> 00:00:19,669 experts and sponsors who provide the fuel to make dreams come 6 00:00:19,708 --> 00:00:19,969 true. 7 00:00:19,969 --> 00:00:22,344 Here's your host, Aaron Alejandro. 8 00:00:30,210 --> 00:00:33,273 Speaker 2: Well, good morning, good afternoon, good evening or 9 00:00:33,493 --> 00:00:38,037 whenever you may be tuning in to the Growing Our Future podcast. 10 00:00:38,037 --> 00:00:39,465 Man, we're glad you're here. 11 00:00:39,465 --> 00:00:43,408 I'm so excited for y'all to meet today's guest, and we just 12 00:00:43,469 --> 00:00:46,386 enjoy bringing people on that are willing to share their time, 13 00:00:46,386 --> 00:00:49,865 their talent, their treasures, their testimony, their insights, 14 00:00:49,865 --> 00:00:54,033 expertise and experiences and to pour into our audience. 15 00:00:54,033 --> 00:00:57,548 You know, like we always say, if agriculture's taught us 16 00:00:57,628 --> 00:01:00,723 anything, it's taught us this If you want to know what the 17 00:01:00,783 --> 00:01:02,409 future is, grow it. 18 00:01:02,409 --> 00:01:06,180 If you want to grow a future, you got to plant the right seeds 19 00:01:06,180 --> 00:01:08,265 , and today is no different. 20 00:01:08,265 --> 00:01:11,933 I was hoping that, the time that we're doing this interview, 21 00:01:11,933 --> 00:01:15,030 I was really hoping I was going to be the first to get to say 22 00:01:15,471 --> 00:01:18,900 ladies and gentlemen, dr Sarah Sprayberry. 23 00:01:18,900 --> 00:01:24,310 But I understand that we're just on the cusp of the official 24 00:01:24,310 --> 00:01:29,006 title doctor, but we do have an incredible advocate here today. 25 00:01:29,006 --> 00:01:31,727 Sarah Sprayberry, thank you for joining us. 26 00:01:31,727 --> 00:01:33,444 Thank you for having me. 27 00:01:33,525 --> 00:01:34,367 Speaker 3: I'm so excited. 28 00:01:35,981 --> 00:01:37,870 Speaker 2: Well, I'm going to tell you a little bit more about 29 00:01:37,870 --> 00:01:41,063 Sarah and how I discovered her here in a second and why I 30 00:01:41,103 --> 00:01:43,691 wanted to bring her onto the show and talk about some things. 31 00:01:43,691 --> 00:01:47,861 But first, you know, sarah, we start off every episode, every 32 00:01:47,980 --> 00:01:52,561 episode of Growing Our Future, with a simple question, and that 33 00:01:52,561 --> 00:01:55,248 is what are you grateful for today? 34 00:01:56,070 --> 00:01:58,811 Speaker 3: I love that question as we are on the cusp of 35 00:01:58,891 --> 00:02:00,200 reaching that doctorate degree. 36 00:02:00,200 --> 00:02:04,189 I've been very reflective lately and I'm just so grateful 37 00:02:04,251 --> 00:02:07,302 that I have the familial support that have gotten me to this 38 00:02:07,382 --> 00:02:07,664 point. 39 00:02:07,664 --> 00:02:12,382 It's been a decade of being in school and that takes a lot of 40 00:02:12,421 --> 00:02:14,829 support from those people who love me most, so I'm very 41 00:02:14,889 --> 00:02:15,550 grateful for them. 42 00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:18,383 Speaker 2: Pretty cool when you think about it. 43 00:02:18,944 --> 00:02:21,853 Speaker 3: It is, and not everybody gets to experience it, 44 00:02:21,853 --> 00:02:22,983 unfortunately. 45 00:02:23,705 --> 00:02:25,310 Speaker 2: Well, it's funny that you said that. 46 00:02:25,310 --> 00:02:27,426 So I actually took a picture. 47 00:02:27,426 --> 00:02:30,769 I've got a picture it's on my social media pages of my family 48 00:02:31,920 --> 00:02:35,122 and I shared it with my kids one day and I said I know I'm going 49 00:02:35,122 --> 00:02:38,605 to sound a little bit sappy I said, but I want y'all to look 50 00:02:38,626 --> 00:02:39,147 at that picture. 51 00:02:40,140 --> 00:02:47,881 And I said, because this is our family and I said you've got to 52 00:02:47,920 --> 00:02:50,143 understand that the reason it means so much to me is I didn't 53 00:02:50,163 --> 00:02:51,985 grow up with that, and so when you hear people that share that 54 00:02:52,004 --> 00:02:56,368 appreciation, I appreciate the fact that you appreciate your 55 00:02:56,429 --> 00:03:01,234 family and obviously they are happy and I guarantee you, sarah 56 00:03:01,234 --> 00:03:06,223 I know, you know this they're proud of you, yeah, and because 57 00:03:06,243 --> 00:03:08,700 they know how hard you've worked to get to where you're at and 58 00:03:09,323 --> 00:03:11,248 this journey that you're on, that you're going to continue to 59 00:03:11,248 --> 00:03:12,070 do great things. 60 00:03:12,070 --> 00:03:15,868 So thank you for sharing that, of course. 61 00:03:15,868 --> 00:03:16,912 Okay. 62 00:03:16,912 --> 00:03:22,432 So years ago I remember there was this thing called MySpace 63 00:03:23,640 --> 00:03:26,468 and I started getting involved because I thought, well, this is 64 00:03:26,468 --> 00:03:29,824 kind of a neat little tool and then, all of a sudden, this 65 00:03:29,884 --> 00:03:34,187 thing called Facebook comes along, became a new twist on the 66 00:03:34,187 --> 00:03:36,278 old tool, if you will, absolutely. 67 00:03:36,741 --> 00:03:41,651 And as I became involved in the FFA and the foundation and my 68 00:03:41,711 --> 00:03:45,586 work with Texas Team Ag Ed, I was actually the one that set up 69 00:03:45,586 --> 00:03:49,026 the original Facebook pages for the FFA, the Ag Teachers 70 00:03:49,067 --> 00:03:52,782 Association and all of them, and I told them I said this is a 71 00:03:52,842 --> 00:03:55,308 communication tool that's coming , okay. 72 00:03:55,308 --> 00:04:00,623 And years ago, sarah, they would tell people that you need 73 00:04:00,644 --> 00:04:01,227 to have a website. 74 00:04:01,227 --> 00:04:02,734 Okay, so years ago we would say you've got to have a website, 75 00:04:02,753 --> 00:04:04,099 that you need to have a website, okay. 76 00:04:04,099 --> 00:04:10,811 So years ago we would say you've got to have a website. 77 00:04:10,811 --> 00:04:13,395 Today, you can't just have a website Today you have to have a 78 00:04:13,395 --> 00:04:14,056 web presence. 79 00:04:14,076 --> 00:04:15,929 Oh yeah, you have to have a presence across the web. 80 00:04:15,929 --> 00:04:19,221 It could be a website, it can be your social media, it could 81 00:04:19,262 --> 00:04:23,942 be a blog, it could be the podcast, but you really there's 82 00:04:24,023 --> 00:04:27,990 so much transfer of information that you want to try to do what 83 00:04:28,050 --> 00:04:29,913 you can to create a web presence . 84 00:04:29,913 --> 00:04:37,081 And early on in my role at the Texas FFA Foundation, I've 85 00:04:37,141 --> 00:04:39,384 always been a strong advocate for agriculture. 86 00:04:39,384 --> 00:04:43,490 People that know me know that's one of my projects is how do we 87 00:04:43,490 --> 00:04:45,194 advocate for agriculture? 88 00:04:45,194 --> 00:04:48,867 How do we promote our farmers and ranchers and the people that 89 00:04:48,867 --> 00:04:52,060 take care of our natural resources and help feed the 90 00:04:52,100 --> 00:04:52,442 world? 91 00:04:52,442 --> 00:04:57,076 And so I've always been an advocate for agriculture. 92 00:04:57,076 --> 00:05:00,043 I've always tried to offer workshops on training people how 93 00:05:00,043 --> 00:05:01,507 to engage with these tools. 94 00:05:01,507 --> 00:05:08,362 But obviously I'm out there watching to engage with these 95 00:05:08,382 --> 00:05:09,625 tools, but obviously I'm out there watching. 96 00:05:09,625 --> 00:05:11,228 So I'm watching people on LinkedIn, I'm watching people on 97 00:05:11,228 --> 00:05:16,682 Facebook, on Instagram, on X or Twitter or TikTok, and one day 98 00:05:16,923 --> 00:05:23,112 I'm scrolling through and I saw one of the funniest videos that 99 00:05:23,211 --> 00:05:32,244 I have ever seen and here is this young lady doing a TikTok 100 00:05:32,264 --> 00:05:36,213 video dance to stock shows and how people show animals at stock 101 00:05:36,213 --> 00:05:36,572 shows. 102 00:05:36,572 --> 00:05:40,593 And I am rolling and I'm sitting there going. 103 00:05:40,593 --> 00:05:42,579 What a tool. 104 00:05:42,579 --> 00:05:47,458 This young lady is taking this topic that so many of us are 105 00:05:47,519 --> 00:05:48,360 familiar with. 106 00:05:48,360 --> 00:05:54,194 She's put it in a format that engages an audience that wants 107 00:05:54,274 --> 00:05:57,661 to have fun, that's still interested in learning. 108 00:05:59,122 --> 00:06:01,985 And lo and behold, I start following Sarah Sprayberry, the 109 00:06:02,045 --> 00:06:02,386 blooming advocate. 110 00:06:02,386 --> 00:06:04,086 I start following Sarah Sprayberry, the blooming 111 00:06:04,307 --> 00:06:08,692 advocate, and I just one day I thought you know, I've had the 112 00:06:08,752 --> 00:06:10,774 farm babe, michelle Miller, on here. 113 00:06:10,774 --> 00:06:21,081 I've been fortunate to have Dr Temple Brandon I've had people 114 00:06:21,141 --> 00:06:22,603 on that, I think represent advocates for agriculture. 115 00:06:22,603 --> 00:06:24,427 And, sarah, I just want you to know that, while you do it in a 116 00:06:24,507 --> 00:06:30,125 fun format, I want to say thank you, because we need people that 117 00:06:30,125 --> 00:06:32,149 are willing to step out there and do that. 118 00:06:32,149 --> 00:06:34,860 So why don't you take a moment here? 119 00:06:34,860 --> 00:06:37,728 Because I would like for you to take us on your journey. 120 00:06:37,728 --> 00:06:39,812 So take us through your. 121 00:06:39,812 --> 00:06:41,882 You know where you're from. 122 00:06:41,882 --> 00:06:44,827 You know your school, school experience to your college 123 00:06:44,927 --> 00:06:50,483 experience, to what led you to want to do this advocacy on this 124 00:06:50,483 --> 00:06:50,985 platform. 125 00:06:51,567 --> 00:06:52,930 Speaker 3: Absolutely I would love to. 126 00:06:52,930 --> 00:06:56,142 So I'm born and raised in Berning, texas, so deep in the 127 00:06:56,182 --> 00:07:00,512 hill country, and like many other people, I did the FFA, I 128 00:07:00,531 --> 00:07:05,725 did 4-H, I showed hogs and so that led me to do animal science 129 00:07:05,725 --> 00:07:08,790 at Texas A&M because I think, like many other youth, I was 130 00:07:08,810 --> 00:07:10,391 like I'm going to be a veterinarian. 131 00:07:10,391 --> 00:07:26,160 And then I got to college and I was like no, I'm not side of 132 00:07:26,180 --> 00:07:26,321 things. 133 00:07:26,321 --> 00:07:27,562 So I really wanted to be with the farmers as well as the 134 00:07:27,583 --> 00:07:27,764 consumers. 135 00:07:27,764 --> 00:07:29,668 So I got knee deep into extension education as well as 136 00:07:29,807 --> 00:07:32,293 research, which are two of my big passions. 137 00:07:32,293 --> 00:07:35,754 So I was on the judging team and with that I really got into 138 00:07:35,834 --> 00:07:40,146 doing youth development and teaching kids about horses as 139 00:07:40,185 --> 00:07:41,088 well as judging. 140 00:07:41,088 --> 00:07:45,009 And then that led me eventually down the line to getting my 141 00:07:45,110 --> 00:07:48,725 master's in swine nutrition, so making people's bacon, as I 142 00:07:48,786 --> 00:07:53,161 always told people and then that led me into my first like true 143 00:07:53,201 --> 00:07:57,089 extension job with Texas Youth Livestock and Agriculture and so 144 00:07:57,089 --> 00:08:00,024 that's kind of what spurred the social media side of things is 145 00:08:00,163 --> 00:08:04,333 I got to do social media for them and I really was just. 146 00:08:04,333 --> 00:08:09,026 I got to do social media for them and I really was just. 147 00:08:09,045 --> 00:08:10,630 It was eyeopening to see how many people engaged in that, but 148 00:08:10,630 --> 00:08:13,259 then also were like, so like did not understand what it was. 149 00:08:13,259 --> 00:08:15,244 Like they would see the livestock shows that we would 150 00:08:15,264 --> 00:08:18,492 post and they'd be like, why are they whipping that pig? 151 00:08:18,492 --> 00:08:20,062 Like, why are they being aggressive? 152 00:08:20,062 --> 00:08:23,586 And so I was like whoa, and so that's kind of like hit the 153 00:08:23,646 --> 00:08:24,247 light bulb in me. 154 00:08:24,247 --> 00:08:25,949 I was like we got to do better. 155 00:08:25,988 --> 00:08:28,872 I think sometimes agriculturalists, we go on the 156 00:08:28,952 --> 00:08:32,035 defensive end, as I like to say with my football reference. 157 00:08:32,035 --> 00:08:35,984 We don't often take offense, and so I think we need to be 158 00:08:36,043 --> 00:08:39,668 better on the offense by just constantly producing educational 159 00:08:39,668 --> 00:08:43,352 materials on social media platforms to reach consumers so 160 00:08:43,393 --> 00:08:46,155 that they understand like we really are. 161 00:08:46,155 --> 00:08:49,707 Like farmers are the first conservationists and they are in 162 00:08:49,707 --> 00:08:52,442 the front line and they are the ones who care about the animals 163 00:08:52,442 --> 00:08:52,804 first. 164 00:08:52,804 --> 00:08:56,317 Listen, they if you have a dead animal, they're not making 165 00:08:56,357 --> 00:08:59,447 money right, so like they have to put animals first. 166 00:08:59,447 --> 00:09:02,739 They are the ones at 4 am breaking ice so that their 167 00:09:02,778 --> 00:09:05,909 cattle can get water, and so I think it's important that on 168 00:09:05,980 --> 00:09:09,447 social media, we can connect people to those farmers and 169 00:09:09,488 --> 00:09:12,982 understand that there's so many misconceptions and just really 170 00:09:13,023 --> 00:09:18,394 get the truth out there for them well, I appreciate the fact 171 00:09:18,413 --> 00:09:21,203 that you're doing that, and so you've probably crossed paths 172 00:09:21,244 --> 00:09:22,605 with dr bill Billy Zanellini. 173 00:09:23,047 --> 00:09:26,370 Yes, he was my boss. 174 00:09:27,373 --> 00:09:30,485 Speaker 2: So Dr Zanellini and Dr Chris Bowman and I, we used 175 00:09:30,504 --> 00:09:33,558 to do a lot of along with Gene Hall when he was at the Texas 176 00:09:33,599 --> 00:09:34,120 Farm Bureau. 177 00:09:34,120 --> 00:09:36,166 We used to do a lot of ag advocacy workshops. 178 00:09:36,166 --> 00:09:40,143 One of the things that I like to talk about and I've shared 179 00:09:40,163 --> 00:09:44,432 this with Sarah before is and you alluded to this, sarah, by 180 00:09:44,471 --> 00:09:47,984 the way, this with Sarah before is, and you alluded to this, 181 00:09:48,004 --> 00:09:49,548 sarah, by the way there's a thing that we sometimes fail to 182 00:09:49,568 --> 00:09:50,773 recognize when we're promoting on social media, and that's 183 00:09:50,793 --> 00:09:51,756 emotional intelligence. 184 00:09:51,756 --> 00:09:59,230 And when you think about the statistics, I think it's 93% of 185 00:09:59,270 --> 00:09:59,831 Americans. 186 00:09:59,831 --> 00:10:01,520 Now let that sink in for a second. 187 00:10:01,520 --> 00:10:03,445 That's a pretty high number. 188 00:10:03,445 --> 00:10:10,804 93% of Americans see a cat or a dog every single day, every 189 00:10:10,845 --> 00:10:11,245 single day. 190 00:10:11,746 --> 00:10:15,274 So if you just do a simple web search, google, whatever your 191 00:10:15,340 --> 00:10:18,927 platform is if you just do a simple search of cats or dogs, 192 00:10:19,710 --> 00:10:21,413 look at what imagery's pop up. 193 00:10:21,413 --> 00:10:24,767 It's, you know, hold and fluffy , pet and fee-fee. 194 00:10:24,767 --> 00:10:29,485 You know it's the emotional intelligence is very loving, 195 00:10:29,625 --> 00:10:30,126 caring. 196 00:10:30,126 --> 00:10:34,159 And then, in the world of production, agriculture, of 197 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:38,769 farming and ranching and animal agriculture, we sometimes don't 198 00:10:38,828 --> 00:10:43,245 post anything until we get to the stock show, right. 199 00:10:43,245 --> 00:10:47,221 So all of a sudden, when you start looking at our images, it 200 00:10:47,240 --> 00:10:48,543 goes back to what you said. 201 00:10:48,543 --> 00:10:51,511 It's an image of oh well, why are they whipping that pig? 202 00:10:51,511 --> 00:10:55,892 Why are they strangling that steer and poking it with a stick 203 00:10:55,892 --> 00:10:55,892 ? 204 00:10:55,892 --> 00:10:59,000 Exactly why are they choking that goat? 205 00:10:59,000 --> 00:11:02,086 And, oh my gosh, they're holding those turkeys upside 206 00:11:02,106 --> 00:11:02,447 down. 207 00:11:02,447 --> 00:11:07,100 Yes, you know, but anybody that knows the care that that 208 00:11:07,763 --> 00:11:12,251 student put into that animal, they would be blown away Exactly 209 00:11:12,251 --> 00:11:12,251 . 210 00:11:12,471 --> 00:11:14,927 But what I appreciate and I've shared this with Sarah before 211 00:11:14,967 --> 00:11:17,240 what I appreciate about what Sarah's doing and we hope to 212 00:11:17,299 --> 00:11:22,508 encourage other advocates is let's tell this incredible story 213 00:11:22,508 --> 00:11:22,989 of food. 214 00:11:22,989 --> 00:11:27,576 People sometimes don't understand the word agriculture, 215 00:11:27,576 --> 00:11:33,455 but everybody understands the word food and it's a chance for 216 00:11:33,595 --> 00:11:36,523 us to help people understand where that comes from. 217 00:11:36,523 --> 00:11:42,234 And so, sarah, take us through why you've chosen this platform. 218 00:11:42,234 --> 00:11:46,350 How do you pick your topics of what you want to share? 219 00:11:46,350 --> 00:11:48,323 That's I'm really intrigued by. 220 00:11:48,323 --> 00:11:49,307 How do you? 221 00:11:49,307 --> 00:11:53,340 Just what is it that spurs a thought that you say this would 222 00:11:54,542 --> 00:11:55,143 be fun to do? 223 00:11:55,143 --> 00:11:56,184 Take us through that. 224 00:11:57,086 --> 00:12:00,572 Speaker 3: So I think a lot of it also stems from my PhD 225 00:12:00,633 --> 00:12:03,886 research is ag literacy in youth , and so things that I've 226 00:12:03,927 --> 00:12:06,884 actually heard you say, that I've worked with, that they 227 00:12:06,964 --> 00:12:10,893 thought was true, have spurred a lot of my tech talks, but also 228 00:12:10,932 --> 00:12:13,346 things that, like people will just comment and say I'm like, 229 00:12:13,485 --> 00:12:15,270 oh man, that is like no. 230 00:12:15,270 --> 00:12:18,826 I believe that, like you know, cattle are ruining the planet, 231 00:12:18,927 --> 00:12:21,100 agriculture is killing the planet, all these things, and so 232 00:12:21,100 --> 00:12:24,145 I take that and often I think when people see that on social 233 00:12:24,167 --> 00:12:26,870 media, they'll share it and they'll say this is not true. 234 00:12:26,870 --> 00:12:29,923 However, they're not thinking that when you share it, you're 235 00:12:30,024 --> 00:12:32,493 helping their initiative and not agriculture. 236 00:12:32,493 --> 00:12:35,903 So for me, I read that comment and I go we're going to make a 237 00:12:35,923 --> 00:12:39,471 TikTok about it and then I'm going to do the facts and do it 238 00:12:39,552 --> 00:12:41,003 in like an engaging, fun way. 239 00:12:41,043 --> 00:12:43,768 I think sometimes it gets a little intimidating, especially 240 00:12:43,788 --> 00:12:47,195 somebody who's never interacted with agriculture if they see 241 00:12:47,215 --> 00:12:51,143 some like jarring things, but if it's very relatable and you 242 00:12:51,163 --> 00:12:54,309 know, just dance and being silly , they're like, okay, I can like 243 00:12:54,309 --> 00:12:55,293 relate with this girl. 244 00:12:55,293 --> 00:12:58,368 And then they see those facts and they're like, okay, and like 245 00:12:58,368 --> 00:13:00,581 some people have even messaged me and they're like you made me 246 00:13:00,621 --> 00:13:03,027 like want to go and like research more to really 247 00:13:03,067 --> 00:13:05,993 understand agriculture in general. 248 00:13:05,993 --> 00:13:06,734 I'm like that's good. 249 00:13:06,734 --> 00:13:09,466 That's what we should be doing is just having an open 250 00:13:09,505 --> 00:13:13,681 conversation about what it is and the industry, and then you 251 00:13:13,721 --> 00:13:16,549 can make your informed decisions by having the facts. 252 00:13:18,461 --> 00:13:19,085 Speaker 2: Well, that's good. 253 00:13:19,085 --> 00:13:24,889 So your strategy sometimes comes from just conversations. 254 00:13:25,149 --> 00:13:26,933 Speaker 3: Oh yeah, a lot of conversation. 255 00:13:26,933 --> 00:13:28,642 I also look up. 256 00:13:28,642 --> 00:13:30,466 I've done this several times. 257 00:13:30,466 --> 00:13:32,431 Is I look up like myths about agriculture? 258 00:13:32,431 --> 00:13:36,068 I'll just Google it myself, or sometimes I'll even look to see, 259 00:13:36,068 --> 00:13:39,000 like what PETA has like just recently put out, so that I can 260 00:13:39,041 --> 00:13:42,128 try to put something else out there that has the true 261 00:13:42,188 --> 00:13:44,033 narrative of what's happening in agriculture. 262 00:13:45,020 --> 00:13:47,731 Speaker 2: So Sarah said something a minute ago and I 263 00:13:47,772 --> 00:13:50,039 want to make sure that we share this with the audience because 264 00:13:50,081 --> 00:13:50,961 this is good stuff. 265 00:13:50,961 --> 00:13:56,072 It's real easy to see something that we find offensive, that we 266 00:13:56,072 --> 00:13:59,894 grow up in a world of food and agricultural production, whether 267 00:13:59,894 --> 00:14:02,964 it be plant or animal production and we see something 268 00:14:02,984 --> 00:14:06,500 that we don't like and so we immediately want to challenge it 269 00:14:06,500 --> 00:14:06,500 . 270 00:14:06,500 --> 00:14:12,711 And the unfortunately with the algorithms and the way 271 00:14:12,772 --> 00:14:17,326 technology works, if we're not careful in challenging it, we 272 00:14:17,527 --> 00:14:21,399 actually promote it absolutely and I kind of go back to what I 273 00:14:21,440 --> 00:14:23,783 was saying about emotional intelligence is that we've got 274 00:14:23,823 --> 00:14:27,230 to take charge of the message, as you have said, and start 275 00:14:27,289 --> 00:14:30,394 sharing the positive of what we do. 276 00:14:30,394 --> 00:14:35,589 I've not posted this yet, but a friend of mine years ago his 277 00:14:35,749 --> 00:14:37,874 youngest son, told me a story. 278 00:14:38,761 --> 00:14:42,249 It was about the day there was a blizzard and a snowstorm and 279 00:14:42,428 --> 00:14:47,500 ice in east texas and their cows were calving and they were 280 00:14:47,559 --> 00:14:50,488 driving around on their four-wheeler going around 281 00:14:50,528 --> 00:14:54,321 checking on the cows and they saw a little nose sticking out 282 00:14:54,360 --> 00:14:59,730 of the water at the tank and they rush over, jump in the 283 00:14:59,769 --> 00:15:04,465 frigid water and pull a baby calf that had just been born out 284 00:15:04,465 --> 00:15:04,465 . 285 00:15:04,465 --> 00:15:07,841 That was just barely hanging on , and what do they do? 286 00:15:07,841 --> 00:15:10,865 They immediately, they all take their jackets off. 287 00:15:10,865 --> 00:15:16,181 They wrap this baby, this newborn, in their jackets. 288 00:15:16,181 --> 00:15:21,110 They let the cow come on over to see her baby and then they 289 00:15:21,230 --> 00:15:24,322 very slowly drove that calf to the barn. 290 00:15:24,322 --> 00:15:29,143 They took the calf inside, they got it into hay, they got it 291 00:15:29,182 --> 00:15:33,006 where it was warm, the mom, and they nurtured that animal. 292 00:15:33,729 --> 00:15:34,211 Speaker 3: Absolutely. 293 00:15:36,224 --> 00:15:38,971 Speaker 2: And I think sometimes we don't always share those 294 00:15:39,011 --> 00:15:39,392 stories. 295 00:15:39,392 --> 00:15:42,046 And those are the stories. 296 00:15:42,046 --> 00:15:46,489 As the development officer for Team Ag Ed, I've been doing this 297 00:15:46,489 --> 00:15:51,138 for 24 years and we've raised millions, of dollars, millions. 298 00:15:51,138 --> 00:15:54,662 And they say, aaron, how have y'all raised those monies? 299 00:15:54,662 --> 00:15:58,547 And I tell them a very similar story is I remember when I was 300 00:15:58,586 --> 00:16:01,529 growing up at Boys Ranch and my dorm parent, mr Chandler, gave 301 00:16:01,551 --> 00:16:02,350 me a sledgehammer. 302 00:16:02,350 --> 00:16:06,102 He told me to drive to the other side of the ranch and bust 303 00:16:06,102 --> 00:16:07,346 the water trough for the horses . 304 00:16:07,346 --> 00:16:16,434 It was five miles, it was in a snowstorm, five miles. 305 00:16:16,434 --> 00:16:16,956 It was in a snowstorm. 306 00:16:16,956 --> 00:16:18,139 And I remember driving over there and, and mr chandler and 307 00:16:18,158 --> 00:16:20,682 his old country wisdom, he just said, darling, do you get 308 00:16:20,744 --> 00:16:21,745 thirsty when it's cold? 309 00:16:21,745 --> 00:16:23,668 And I said, yes, sir. 310 00:16:23,668 --> 00:16:26,240 He said, don't you think those horses get thirsty too? 311 00:16:27,182 --> 00:16:28,024 yeah yes, sir. 312 00:16:28,024 --> 00:16:30,499 So I drove over there and I busted the water trough for the 313 00:16:30,519 --> 00:16:35,739 horses and companies that have nothing to do with agriculture, 314 00:16:35,798 --> 00:16:39,552 people that did not grow up in FFA or agriculture, like you or 315 00:16:39,653 --> 00:16:40,154 I did, sarah. 316 00:16:40,154 --> 00:16:44,105 I always tell them, I said, the thing that separates our kids 317 00:16:44,164 --> 00:16:47,836 from everybody else is that in the world of agriculture, if we 318 00:16:47,897 --> 00:16:52,721 don't do our job, something does something does yeah. 319 00:16:52,721 --> 00:16:57,846 Think about that and what an incredible intrinsic value 320 00:16:57,885 --> 00:16:58,307 system. 321 00:16:58,866 --> 00:16:59,086 Speaker 3: Yeah. 322 00:16:59,687 --> 00:17:02,931 Speaker 2: That we're putting in young people to know that what 323 00:17:02,990 --> 00:17:04,051 they do is important. 324 00:17:04,051 --> 00:17:09,515 Look at you. 325 00:17:09,515 --> 00:17:10,396 I mean you're a great example of that. 326 00:17:10,396 --> 00:17:12,260 I mean I'm proud of what you've done, I'm proud of where you're 327 00:17:12,260 --> 00:17:13,343 going, I'm proud of this incredible voice that you're 328 00:17:13,363 --> 00:17:14,765 sharing on technology platforms. 329 00:17:14,765 --> 00:17:19,875 But it's because somewhere along the way, you got something 330 00:17:19,875 --> 00:17:23,663 instilled in you that your fellow man depends on you. 331 00:17:23,663 --> 00:17:28,576 The things in your care, depending the natural resources, 332 00:17:28,576 --> 00:17:35,307 depend on you, and you've taken it seriously yeah is that fair 333 00:17:35,366 --> 00:17:36,808 to say absolutely? 334 00:17:38,069 --> 00:17:45,227 yeah so let's talk about this, because I'm hoping that you can 335 00:17:45,307 --> 00:17:48,940 inspire which I know you will somebody else that may decide. 336 00:17:48,940 --> 00:17:54,815 I want to go online and I want to be positive about decide. 337 00:17:54,815 --> 00:17:56,097 I want to go online and I want to be positive about agriculture 338 00:17:56,097 --> 00:17:56,499 and food production. 339 00:17:56,499 --> 00:18:01,690 And if you were going to give some ag students tips on being 340 00:18:01,891 --> 00:18:05,681 online and sharing positive messages, what would those tips 341 00:18:05,740 --> 00:18:05,961 be? 342 00:18:05,961 --> 00:18:06,704 What would you tell them? 343 00:18:08,215 --> 00:18:10,561 Speaker 3: So this actually makes me go back to. 344 00:18:10,561 --> 00:18:12,935 I was just at a conference for ag educators and they were 345 00:18:12,955 --> 00:18:14,603 talking about NIL. 346 00:18:14,603 --> 00:18:17,762 I'm a big sports girl, so your name, image and likeness that we 347 00:18:17,762 --> 00:18:20,297 see with these athletes they talked about it with your 348 00:18:20,317 --> 00:18:23,886 department, but I thought about it in the way of agriculture. 349 00:18:23,886 --> 00:18:27,724 What I would say to youth is you have to remember that your 350 00:18:27,826 --> 00:18:30,615 name, image and likeness is connected to the ag industry. 351 00:18:30,615 --> 00:18:36,881 You are probably maybe the one person that is going to interact 352 00:18:36,881 --> 00:18:40,034 with agriculture, so one person who's never experienced 353 00:18:40,074 --> 00:18:42,461 agriculture and then you are the person that they are going to 354 00:18:42,500 --> 00:18:42,662 do. 355 00:18:42,701 --> 00:18:46,320 So you need to make sure that your name, image and likeness is 356 00:18:46,320 --> 00:18:49,076 representing agriculture well, so you want it to be a positive 357 00:18:49,115 --> 00:18:49,778 interaction. 358 00:18:49,778 --> 00:18:51,402 You don't want to be negative. 359 00:18:51,402 --> 00:18:54,641 We don't want to put them down for not understanding something 360 00:18:55,123 --> 00:18:57,492 Because listen, I mean, not everybody gets the beautiful 361 00:18:57,553 --> 00:19:01,342 opportunity of being an FFA and really interacting with our 362 00:19:01,422 --> 00:19:01,863 industry. 363 00:19:01,863 --> 00:19:05,576 That is so wonderful, and so I think when we're online 364 00:19:05,616 --> 00:19:09,566 sometimes we tend to make fun of people who don't understand 365 00:19:09,605 --> 00:19:09,866 things. 366 00:19:09,866 --> 00:19:10,188 But what. 367 00:19:10,315 --> 00:19:13,404 I've learned is that when you come at a level head and you 368 00:19:13,444 --> 00:19:17,430 just really try to make it engaging and fun and positive, 369 00:19:17,750 --> 00:19:21,097 that people are going to be more swayed to understand or listen 370 00:19:21,157 --> 00:19:22,560 to your side of things. 371 00:19:24,824 --> 00:19:27,007 Speaker 2: Wow, okay. 372 00:19:27,007 --> 00:19:30,258 So I want every listener I know every listener knows this 373 00:19:30,278 --> 00:19:32,435 because you hear us talk about almost every podcast be a 374 00:19:32,516 --> 00:19:33,378 lifelong learner. 375 00:19:33,378 --> 00:19:36,048 Yeah, don't ever quit learning. 376 00:19:36,048 --> 00:19:37,814 Go back to agriculture. 377 00:19:37,814 --> 00:19:40,963 I always tell people, when you're green you grow, when 378 00:19:40,983 --> 00:19:41,967 you're ripe, you're ripe. 379 00:19:41,967 --> 00:19:46,000 So don't quit growing, just always be listening. 380 00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:48,185 And Sarah just gave me something I'd never heard before 381 00:19:48,185 --> 00:19:48,185 . 382 00:19:48,185 --> 00:19:50,155 So I'm learning today. 383 00:19:50,155 --> 00:19:50,855 I love it. 384 00:19:50,855 --> 00:19:58,761 Sarah shared N-I-L yeah Name, image and likeness and everybody 385 00:19:58,761 --> 00:20:02,084 that knows me, sarah, on social media platforms knows that one 386 00:20:02,104 --> 00:20:05,205 of my handles most people know me by my handle Live your Brand. 387 00:20:05,767 --> 00:20:06,007 Speaker 1: Yeah. 388 00:20:06,967 --> 00:20:09,528 Speaker 2: And so what I tell young people is that what you 389 00:20:09,648 --> 00:20:13,971 share, what you comment on, what you engage in, that becomes 390 00:20:13,991 --> 00:20:21,618 your brand, and when people start looking at you for a job 391 00:20:21,638 --> 00:20:22,864 or people are starting to scrub your character or who you are, 392 00:20:22,884 --> 00:20:25,134 they're going to look at that platform and they're going to 393 00:20:25,193 --> 00:20:27,058 say what are you an expert in? 394 00:20:27,058 --> 00:20:30,976 And so I like to tell young people that what you share like 395 00:20:31,096 --> 00:20:36,596 comment on, shows me the three areas that you're an expert, and 396 00:20:36,596 --> 00:20:39,002 I don't know if you know the story or not, but I'll share it 397 00:20:39,042 --> 00:20:39,724 very quickly. 398 00:20:39,724 --> 00:20:43,040 But where Live your Brand came from is. 399 00:20:43,060 --> 00:20:45,906 There was a young man from Jacksboro, texas, named Johnny 400 00:20:45,946 --> 00:20:51,462 Callen, and Johnny Callen was a Ford leadership scholar and 401 00:20:52,003 --> 00:20:54,248 Johnny Callum is one of the sharpest young men I think I've 402 00:20:54,288 --> 00:21:00,003 ever met and he unfortunately died in a tragic automobile 403 00:21:00,144 --> 00:21:05,580 accident on a way to a stock show, and executives from Ford 404 00:21:05,601 --> 00:21:07,977 Motor Company, people from all over the country, came to 405 00:21:08,017 --> 00:21:08,740 Johnny's funeral. 406 00:21:08,740 --> 00:21:15,069 I was actually keynoting a speech out in Las Vegas and I 407 00:21:15,150 --> 00:21:19,640 remember, in front of an empty room full of chairs, I talked 408 00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:23,527 about Johnny Callen and I said, if you pulled up that 409 00:21:23,586 --> 00:21:29,461 17-year-old boy's social media, he always talked about FFA, 410 00:21:31,123 --> 00:21:35,869 agriculture and leadership, and I said Johnny Callen was an 411 00:21:35,930 --> 00:21:40,923 example of how to live your brand, and so from that point on 412 00:21:40,923 --> 00:21:43,915 , I just said it's time to start talking about live your brand. 413 00:21:44,416 --> 00:21:45,098 Speaker 3: Absolutely. 414 00:21:45,419 --> 00:21:50,228 Speaker 2: So the live, your brand icon, came from the legacy 415 00:21:50,228 --> 00:21:51,028 of Johnny Callen. 416 00:21:51,028 --> 00:21:53,907 So Sarah is an example of that. 417 00:21:53,907 --> 00:21:58,082 If you follow Sarah on her social media, it's not going to 418 00:21:58,102 --> 00:21:58,843 take you long. 419 00:21:58,843 --> 00:22:01,327 Number one she's got a sense of humor. 420 00:22:01,327 --> 00:22:09,727 Number two, she's got a passion for all things agriculture, and 421 00:22:09,727 --> 00:22:14,461 she also wants to be helpful, and all that comes out in what 422 00:22:14,501 --> 00:22:15,304 you share, sarah. 423 00:22:16,215 --> 00:22:19,382 So I think it's important, like you said, for young people to 424 00:22:19,442 --> 00:22:22,548 know that on your platforms. 425 00:22:22,548 --> 00:22:25,901 I mean, you know, think about it, and I think you would agree 426 00:22:25,921 --> 00:22:29,138 with me if we, if you and I, could go sit down with every 427 00:22:29,299 --> 00:22:32,810 eighth grader, every middle school eighth grader, and say 428 00:22:32,830 --> 00:22:34,435 listen, you're fixing to go into high school. 429 00:22:34,435 --> 00:22:38,845 Do me a favor, find three things that you really want to 430 00:22:38,884 --> 00:22:41,979 be good at, three things that you really care about, and for 431 00:22:41,999 --> 00:22:45,747 the next four years, share a lot of stuff about those three 432 00:22:45,807 --> 00:22:46,087 things. 433 00:22:46,087 --> 00:22:50,204 And then, when you go to college, I want you to do the 434 00:22:50,244 --> 00:22:50,726 same thing. 435 00:22:50,726 --> 00:22:53,220 I want you to find those three things and I want you to share 436 00:22:53,319 --> 00:22:54,925 as much as you can about those three things. 437 00:22:54,925 --> 00:22:58,044 Would you agree that when they get ready to look for a job, 438 00:22:59,016 --> 00:23:00,883 they're ready yeah. 439 00:23:01,796 --> 00:23:02,900 Pretty easy, don't you think? 440 00:23:03,382 --> 00:23:03,903 Speaker 3: Absolutely. 441 00:23:05,676 --> 00:23:06,761 Speaker 2: Why do you think it would be easy? 442 00:23:08,076 --> 00:23:10,002 Speaker 3: Well, I mean, I'll say from personal experience 443 00:23:10,042 --> 00:23:13,233 that I'm looking for faculty positions right now and I 444 00:23:13,273 --> 00:23:17,126 guarantee they have looked at my TikToks and so when they look 445 00:23:17,208 --> 00:23:20,180 at that, they do see that I mean I present myself as an ag 446 00:23:20,200 --> 00:23:22,491 literacy person in youth development and so when they're 447 00:23:22,531 --> 00:23:25,140 actually looking at social media , like oh, she actually is 448 00:23:25,279 --> 00:23:27,305 living out what she says, that she is. 449 00:23:27,305 --> 00:23:30,218 So it's just shows and it's kind of an artifact to be like, 450 00:23:30,318 --> 00:23:33,826 yeah, no, she really stands by her word, because actions speak 451 00:23:33,866 --> 00:23:35,376 louder than words and we know that. 452 00:23:35,376 --> 00:23:38,305 And so an action on social media definitely says a lot 453 00:23:38,326 --> 00:23:38,645 about you. 454 00:23:39,575 --> 00:23:42,464 Speaker 2: Wow, that's good, yeah, yeah. 455 00:23:42,464 --> 00:23:45,681 So I hope that young people hear this. 456 00:23:45,681 --> 00:23:49,189 That it's this is a key takeaway is that you know 457 00:23:49,695 --> 00:23:50,717 another way of putting it. 458 00:23:50,717 --> 00:23:54,522 That I sometimes put, like if I were talking to your FFA class 459 00:23:54,563 --> 00:23:57,587 back in the day at Bernie, is I would always ask them. 460 00:23:57,587 --> 00:23:59,089 I said, tell me about your business. 461 00:23:59,089 --> 00:24:02,321 And they all look at me puzzled and they say, well, mr 462 00:24:02,382 --> 00:24:03,846 Alejandro, I don't have a business. 463 00:24:03,846 --> 00:24:06,221 I said, yeah, you do, you're it ? 464 00:24:06,221 --> 00:24:11,820 Do you get to work on time, customer service, friendly? 465 00:24:11,820 --> 00:24:13,819 Can you communicate well? 466 00:24:13,819 --> 00:24:15,517 Do you get along with other peers? 467 00:24:15,517 --> 00:24:18,207 You see, I think to your point what you were saying. 468 00:24:18,307 --> 00:24:25,107 Your your nil, your name image likeness that, that's it is so 469 00:24:25,429 --> 00:24:27,894 not only are you living your personal brand, but hopefully, 470 00:24:28,496 --> 00:24:32,925 maybe somewhere along the way, whether it's agriculture or the 471 00:24:32,965 --> 00:24:37,000 company that you work for, maybe you find something that spurs 472 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:39,807 your passion to say I want to share more about this. 473 00:24:39,807 --> 00:24:43,326 Just you, you've become passionate about sharing for 474 00:24:43,445 --> 00:24:44,028 agriculture. 475 00:24:44,349 --> 00:24:44,791 Speaker 3: Absolutely. 476 00:24:46,656 --> 00:24:50,545 Speaker 2: What are some of the challenges that you've found in 477 00:24:50,605 --> 00:24:53,786 communicating and challenges that you've found in advocating 478 00:24:53,806 --> 00:24:57,239 challenges that you've found in advocating that's a fantastic 479 00:24:57,278 --> 00:24:57,700 question. 480 00:24:58,381 --> 00:25:01,007 Speaker 3: I think, regardless of what you do, you're always 481 00:25:01,027 --> 00:25:03,199 going to find somebody that's going to want to put you down 482 00:25:03,599 --> 00:25:07,415 and somebody that is going to you know, people are very 483 00:25:07,476 --> 00:25:10,188 confident when they're behind a screen, right, and so they 484 00:25:10,248 --> 00:25:12,454 really going to be those keyboard warriors that are going 485 00:25:12,454 --> 00:25:12,920 to come for you. 486 00:25:12,920 --> 00:25:13,807 And people have really going to be those keyboard warriors that 487 00:25:13,807 --> 00:25:14,369 are going to come for you. 488 00:25:14,369 --> 00:25:17,574 And people have told me that, like you're like wow, your PhD 489 00:25:17,614 --> 00:25:19,877 must not mean anything because you don't know anything, and I'm 490 00:25:19,877 --> 00:25:25,215 like, oh, wow, that's so that's a heavy thing, and so I mean 491 00:25:25,236 --> 00:25:26,439 that's going to happen in life. 492 00:25:26,499 --> 00:25:28,763 I mean, regardless on social media, it's going to happen in 493 00:25:28,824 --> 00:25:31,609 real life and I think it's important that you don't let 494 00:25:31,630 --> 00:25:35,157 that get you down and you just have grit and just keep going 495 00:25:35,278 --> 00:25:37,804 and know that what you're passionate about is important, 496 00:25:38,405 --> 00:25:40,498 and take that and just keep running with it. 497 00:25:40,498 --> 00:25:43,426 I mean you can't let the haters get you. 498 00:25:43,426 --> 00:25:48,202 And that's probably the biggest thing that I've had to overcome 499 00:25:48,202 --> 00:25:51,034 on social media is because, especially as you continue to 500 00:25:51,055 --> 00:25:54,260 get followers, you also continue to get to more views and then 501 00:25:54,661 --> 00:25:57,807 more people see it and then I get more negative comments 502 00:25:59,289 --> 00:26:00,090 that's awesome. 503 00:26:01,376 --> 00:26:02,199 Speaker 2: That's really good. 504 00:26:02,199 --> 00:26:03,882 Um, I like what you said. 505 00:26:04,001 --> 00:26:09,036 I a lot of times people hear me talk about the three r's yeah 506 00:26:09,396 --> 00:26:12,260 and I had people tell me that to put this country back on track, 507 00:26:12,260 --> 00:26:13,742 we need to get back to the basics. 508 00:26:13,742 --> 00:26:18,869 You know reading, writing and arithmetic and I'm like you know 509 00:26:18,869 --> 00:26:21,599 , before I took the foundation job, I used to work in a boot 510 00:26:21,640 --> 00:26:21,941 camp. 511 00:26:21,941 --> 00:26:24,307 I worked with true and offenders and I worked in a 512 00:26:24,394 --> 00:26:28,003 prison and everybody that I worked with could read, write 513 00:26:28,044 --> 00:26:29,467 and do math at a functional level. 514 00:26:29,467 --> 00:26:33,444 I said but you're right about the three R's, but I believe the 515 00:26:33,444 --> 00:26:37,461 three R's are respect, responsibility and resiliency, 516 00:26:38,903 --> 00:26:41,249 and I think that holds true on social media. 517 00:26:41,249 --> 00:26:44,825 I think it holds true in our families and our communities and 518 00:26:44,825 --> 00:26:45,246 our life. 519 00:26:45,246 --> 00:26:50,423 We can disagree with somebody, but you can still be respectful. 520 00:26:50,423 --> 00:26:53,288 You can take responsibility for your own actions. 521 00:26:54,411 --> 00:26:59,039 Yeah, you can also be resilient, but absolutely I love it, have 522 00:26:59,059 --> 00:27:03,208 a grit it, have some grit it. 523 00:27:03,208 --> 00:27:09,077 Yes, you know god, god did not create failures, god did not 524 00:27:09,137 --> 00:27:10,138 create flops. 525 00:27:10,138 --> 00:27:15,946 He created us all for greatness , just by design alone. 526 00:27:15,946 --> 00:27:20,559 You have everything to stand firm on and you know people can 527 00:27:20,599 --> 00:27:25,786 disagree, and but do it in a way that's respectful and you don't 528 00:27:25,786 --> 00:27:25,786 . 529 00:27:25,786 --> 00:27:28,825 You don't have to be hateful or mean and being disagreeable. 530 00:27:31,776 --> 00:27:38,394 Agree, say that again yeah let's talk about leadership for a 531 00:27:38,433 --> 00:27:41,319 minute, because we're planting seeds, right. 532 00:27:41,319 --> 00:27:43,443 So let's talk about leadership. 533 00:27:43,443 --> 00:27:48,420 You're, you're about to get your phd, you're working your 534 00:27:48,480 --> 00:27:49,001 way through. 535 00:27:49,001 --> 00:27:50,605 You're going to have an incredible career. 536 00:27:50,605 --> 00:27:52,016 You're going to have an influence. 537 00:27:52,016 --> 00:27:55,144 You know one of the statements that I like to share and I need 538 00:27:55,163 --> 00:27:56,968 to make sure you hear this because this is you. 539 00:27:57,976 --> 00:28:00,884 The essence of leadership is to plant trees under whose shade 540 00:28:00,904 --> 00:28:01,768 you may never sit. 541 00:28:01,768 --> 00:28:08,740 You have no idea the impact that you're having on other 542 00:28:08,780 --> 00:28:11,044 people's lives and how. 543 00:28:11,044 --> 00:28:15,169 What you do, sarah, could be that you know you might inspire 544 00:28:15,308 --> 00:28:17,191 my granddaughter's mentor one day. 545 00:28:17,191 --> 00:28:22,644 You know you may be the one that gives information to my 546 00:28:22,704 --> 00:28:26,481 grandson's president one day, you never know. 547 00:28:26,481 --> 00:28:29,084 So the essence of leadership is to plant trees under whose 548 00:28:29,104 --> 00:28:30,135 shade we may never set. 549 00:28:30,135 --> 00:28:36,487 If you were also having the opportunity to talk to kids, 550 00:28:37,388 --> 00:28:39,881 what would be some leadership tips you would give them in 551 00:28:39,941 --> 00:28:42,434 terms of you know, if you want to be a better leader, do these 552 00:28:42,474 --> 00:28:42,815 things. 553 00:28:42,815 --> 00:28:43,836 What would you say? 554 00:28:45,957 --> 00:28:48,298 Speaker 3: I think the first one would be kind of, what you were 555 00:28:48,298 --> 00:28:53,701 talking about is kindness, because I know that in academia, 556 00:28:53,701 --> 00:28:56,804 often when people kind of get up in the ranks and they start 557 00:28:56,824 --> 00:29:00,727 to get to tenure, they kind of saying if I can impact one 558 00:29:00,767 --> 00:29:11,416 person, that person still matters right, because we don't 559 00:29:11,457 --> 00:29:13,703 know where that person's going to go and they could impact even 560 00:29:13,703 --> 00:29:14,405 more people. 561 00:29:14,405 --> 00:29:19,064 And so I think that is probably step one is just always be 562 00:29:19,124 --> 00:29:21,188 humble, stay humble, stay kind. 563 00:29:21,188 --> 00:29:23,459 And then another one is adaptability. 564 00:29:23,459 --> 00:29:27,164 I think, especially in this world today, you have to learn 565 00:29:27,224 --> 00:29:31,517 how to be adaptable and be able to take those hits and just keep 566 00:29:31,517 --> 00:29:34,964 rolling with it and be able to, even if somebody tells you no, 567 00:29:35,286 --> 00:29:39,260 adapt and pump yourself up and then go again and that kind of 568 00:29:39,300 --> 00:29:39,842 goes back with. 569 00:29:39,842 --> 00:29:40,022 That. 570 00:29:40,022 --> 00:29:43,517 Grit is just, somebody may tell you no, but somebody may also 571 00:29:43,557 --> 00:29:47,461 tell you yes, and you just have to keep going and just try to 572 00:29:47,561 --> 00:29:47,982 strive. 573 00:29:47,982 --> 00:29:50,025 And if you have that passion, you just got to follow it. 574 00:29:53,048 --> 00:29:53,750 Speaker 2: Making notes. 575 00:29:53,750 --> 00:29:54,290 That's good. 576 00:29:54,290 --> 00:30:00,930 If you have not already read it , I'm going to recommend a book 577 00:30:01,029 --> 00:30:01,392 for you. 578 00:30:01,392 --> 00:30:04,358 Yeah, so one of my board members. 579 00:30:04,358 --> 00:30:07,707 There was a late, great motivational speaker named Zig 580 00:30:07,747 --> 00:30:10,282 Ziglar, and Zig Ziglar was famous. 581 00:30:10,282 --> 00:30:12,803 I mean, he's one of the world's most famous motivational 582 00:30:12,843 --> 00:30:13,183 speakers. 583 00:30:13,183 --> 00:30:17,906 His son, Tom Ziglar, is on the Foundation Board of Directors, 584 00:30:18,055 --> 00:30:21,316 and so Tom and I have a lot of conversations and he wrote a 585 00:30:21,396 --> 00:30:27,067 book that hit coming right out of COVID, called Ten Leadership 586 00:30:27,146 --> 00:30:33,057 Virtues for Disruptive Times of COVID called 10 Leadership 587 00:30:33,076 --> 00:30:35,321 Virtues for Disruptive Times 10 Leadership Virtues and kindness 588 00:30:35,342 --> 00:30:38,008 is one of those, by the way and he bases leadership on virtues 589 00:30:38,931 --> 00:30:42,960 and when you put virtues in place in your life, they come 590 00:30:43,079 --> 00:30:44,403 out in the way that you lead. 591 00:30:45,644 --> 00:30:47,878 They become empathetic when they need to be empathetic. 592 00:30:47,878 --> 00:30:49,028 They become coachable when they need to be empathetic. 593 00:30:49,028 --> 00:30:50,938 They become coachable when they need to become coachable. 594 00:30:50,938 --> 00:30:54,068 They're kind when they need to be kind, they're humble. 595 00:30:54,068 --> 00:30:56,195 So you said something there. 596 00:30:56,195 --> 00:30:59,544 I just wanted to share that with you because that was really 597 00:30:59,544 --> 00:30:59,784 good. 598 00:30:59,784 --> 00:31:02,759 He also says this you know we talk a lot about like. 599 00:31:02,759 --> 00:31:06,676 A lot of times when I talk to businesses and organizations, I 600 00:31:06,817 --> 00:31:08,882 ask them I said did anybody see COVID coming? 601 00:31:10,766 --> 00:31:11,528 Speaker 1: No, we didn't. 602 00:31:12,996 --> 00:31:13,657 Speaker 2: So what do we do? 603 00:31:13,657 --> 00:31:19,334 We expect the best, we prepare for the worst, but we capitalize 604 00:31:19,334 --> 00:31:20,195 on whatever comes. 605 00:31:20,195 --> 00:31:22,059 I like that. 606 00:31:22,059 --> 00:31:22,961 That's what Ziegler said. 607 00:31:22,961 --> 00:31:25,595 He said you expect the best, prepare for the worst, but 608 00:31:25,634 --> 00:31:27,179 capitalize on whatever comes. 609 00:31:27,179 --> 00:31:30,797 And so I love when you said be adaptable. 610 00:31:30,797 --> 00:31:33,844 And so I'm going to show you how timeless that is. 611 00:31:33,844 --> 00:31:38,160 Anybody that will go back in time and find any of my old ICEV 612 00:31:38,160 --> 00:31:43,068 videos, all the way back into the 80s you will find that one 613 00:31:43,128 --> 00:31:46,721 of the three tips that I give young people is to be adaptable. 614 00:31:46,721 --> 00:31:52,759 If there's one thing that we can count on is there's going to 615 00:31:52,759 --> 00:31:54,144 be more disruption coming. 616 00:31:54,144 --> 00:31:56,142 Disruption is not going away. 617 00:31:56,142 --> 00:31:58,784 There is more disruption coming . 618 00:31:58,784 --> 00:32:02,282 We're going to have to get comfortable being uncomfortable. 619 00:32:02,904 --> 00:32:03,307 Speaker 3: Absolutely. 620 00:32:04,576 --> 00:32:07,458 Speaker 2: And through that uncomfortableness we're going to 621 00:32:07,458 --> 00:32:09,304 pick up Sarah's wisdom right there. 622 00:32:09,304 --> 00:32:12,002 It's going to be uncomfortable, but we're still going to be 623 00:32:12,042 --> 00:32:12,364 kind. 624 00:32:12,364 --> 00:32:15,803 We're going to be uncomfortable , but we're going to learn to 625 00:32:15,844 --> 00:32:16,204 adapt. 626 00:32:16,204 --> 00:32:19,882 We're going to be uncomfortable , but we're going to remain 627 00:32:19,942 --> 00:32:21,506 positive and look for the best. 628 00:32:21,506 --> 00:32:25,301 We're going to be uncomfortable , but we're still going to stay 629 00:32:25,383 --> 00:32:26,685 focused on our goals. 630 00:32:26,685 --> 00:32:29,540 That target that beckons. 631 00:32:29,540 --> 00:32:31,026 We're still going to push forward. 632 00:32:31,026 --> 00:32:35,325 This lady right here is a great example of it. 633 00:32:35,325 --> 00:32:39,125 So you lived through the COVID years. 634 00:32:40,316 --> 00:32:46,798 You push through your dream your target and through that process 635 00:32:46,798 --> 00:32:50,516 you've practiced these things and they show which is why 636 00:32:51,057 --> 00:32:52,819 you've got this branding that you have. 637 00:32:53,520 --> 00:32:53,800 Speaker 3: Yeah. 638 00:32:54,482 --> 00:32:59,556 Speaker 2: So well, sarah, I just want to say thank you for 639 00:33:00,136 --> 00:33:00,838 taking time. 640 00:33:00,838 --> 00:33:05,107 Do you happen to know she's been a guest on this show? 641 00:33:05,107 --> 00:33:07,859 By the way, do you happen to know Madeline Bar? 642 00:33:07,859 --> 00:33:12,396 I don't she's from bernie is she really? 643 00:33:12,457 --> 00:33:15,746 Speaker 3: I should look her up madeline um. 644 00:33:16,807 --> 00:33:20,436 Speaker 2: She sold a pig at the county stock show for, I think, 645 00:33:20,436 --> 00:33:24,226 thirty thousand dollars yeah and then she turned around and 646 00:33:24,286 --> 00:33:27,678 donated it all to saint jude's children's hospital that's 647 00:33:27,718 --> 00:33:28,159 amazing. 648 00:33:28,159 --> 00:33:34,209 And she herself was a child with cancer and they cured her. 649 00:33:34,910 --> 00:33:35,109 Speaker 3: Yeah. 650 00:33:36,057 --> 00:33:38,095 Speaker 2: And through FFA and through her project. 651 00:33:38,095 --> 00:33:40,000 She said I want to help somebody else. 652 00:33:40,903 --> 00:33:44,355 Speaker 3: I love that, so I've had two guests from Barney Texas 653 00:33:44,355 --> 00:33:44,355 . 654 00:33:44,698 --> 00:33:46,493 Speaker 2: On the Growing Our Future podcast. 655 00:33:46,674 --> 00:33:47,941 Speaker 3: They raised some good kids. 656 00:33:48,615 --> 00:33:52,641 Speaker 2: Let's do something right, madeline. 657 00:33:52,641 --> 00:33:53,281 Thank you, hey. 658 00:33:53,281 --> 00:33:56,588 By the way, before you leave, we always like to have one last 659 00:33:56,689 --> 00:33:58,017 fun final question. 660 00:33:58,017 --> 00:34:03,067 I'm just curious what is the best concert you've ever been to 661 00:34:03,067 --> 00:34:03,067 ? 662 00:34:04,298 --> 00:34:06,461 Speaker 3: oh, that's gonna be hard. 663 00:34:06,481 --> 00:34:12,960 Speaker 2: I feel like you're gonna judge me I'm talking to a 664 00:34:13,541 --> 00:34:18,108 social media influencer who's putting content out all the time 665 00:34:18,108 --> 00:34:20,139 and she's afraid I'm about to judge her. 666 00:34:20,139 --> 00:34:23,414 That was the most classic comment of this entire interview 667 00:34:23,414 --> 00:34:23,414 . 668 00:34:23,414 --> 00:34:25,619 Go ahead, sarah. 669 00:34:25,619 --> 00:34:27,043 What's the best concert you've ever? 670 00:34:27,063 --> 00:34:27,525 Speaker 3: been well. 671 00:34:27,525 --> 00:34:30,757 I'm a swifty, so it's gonna have to be the taylor swift 672 00:34:30,797 --> 00:34:31,297 concert. 673 00:34:31,297 --> 00:34:35,103 I know really, yeah, which one. 674 00:34:35,103 --> 00:34:38,630 So I went back in like the og days. 675 00:34:38,630 --> 00:34:43,360 So when I was 15 I went in san antonio and that was probably 676 00:34:43,942 --> 00:34:45,143 one of the best experiences. 677 00:34:45,143 --> 00:34:51,550 I went with my mama so I think that's great by the way memories 678 00:34:51,550 --> 00:34:53,036 um. 679 00:34:53,317 --> 00:34:56,501 Speaker 2: So everybody that knows me knows I am a diehard, 680 00:34:56,702 --> 00:35:05,820 diehard bruce springsteen and jimmy buffett fan oh so I'm 681 00:35:05,860 --> 00:35:12,612 diehard bruce jimmy yeah and so I had a friend of mine who was 682 00:35:12,652 --> 00:35:18,222 helping me understand the, the genre of swifties of taylor 683 00:35:18,242 --> 00:35:18,663 swift. 684 00:35:18,663 --> 00:35:22,936 And he told me, and all he had to say was this he said aaron 685 00:35:24,077 --> 00:35:27,483 taylor is the bruce springsteen of this generation. 686 00:35:27,483 --> 00:35:28,784 And when. 687 00:35:28,885 --> 00:35:33,280 I know how big Bruce Springsteen is, and then I see how big 688 00:35:33,320 --> 00:35:33,943 Taylor is. 689 00:35:33,943 --> 00:35:38,585 Even though it may be a different genre of music for me, 690 00:35:38,585 --> 00:35:41,804 I appreciate it out of respect for the talent. 691 00:35:42,286 --> 00:35:42,505 Speaker 3: Yeah. 692 00:35:43,215 --> 00:35:44,882 Speaker 2: So I think that's great, by the way. 693 00:35:44,882 --> 00:35:48,543 So I can only assume you watch the Super Bowl. 694 00:35:49,344 --> 00:35:54,778 Speaker 3: Well, yeah, of course I did. 695 00:35:55,762 --> 00:35:56,385 Speaker 2: That's great. 696 00:35:56,385 --> 00:36:00,985 Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us for another 697 00:36:01,126 --> 00:36:03,394 episode of the Growing Our Future podcast. 698 00:36:03,394 --> 00:36:08,045 We appreciate you stopping by and we appreciate Sarah. 699 00:36:08,045 --> 00:36:12,335 Sarah, thank you, sarah, thank you, yeah, thank you Coming on 700 00:36:12,416 --> 00:36:17,527 and sharing with us and kind of giving us an example of what 701 00:36:17,567 --> 00:36:21,521 it's like to get out there and share your brand and your NIL 702 00:36:22,202 --> 00:36:26,579 and how you can use that to promote where our food comes 703 00:36:26,659 --> 00:36:31,418 from, and we just appreciate you for taking some time to come on 704 00:36:31,418 --> 00:36:33,219 and share that and we wish you the best. 705 00:36:33,219 --> 00:36:36,818 I hope that the next time we talk you'll officially be Dr 706 00:36:37,139 --> 00:36:37,762 Sprayberry. 707 00:36:38,585 --> 00:36:38,806 Speaker 3: Yep. 708 00:36:40,382 --> 00:36:42,954 Speaker 2: And that we all get a front row seat to your career, 709 00:36:43,056 --> 00:36:45,597 because I suspect you're going to plant some incredible trees. 710 00:36:46,219 --> 00:36:47,965 Speaker 3: Thank you Appreciate that. 711 00:36:48,715 --> 00:36:51,677 Speaker 2: So, until our paths all cross again, everybody 712 00:36:51,757 --> 00:36:55,085 remember, if you want to know what the future is, grow it. 713 00:36:55,085 --> 00:36:58,402 That means you got to plant the right seeds, you've got to take 714 00:36:58,402 --> 00:37:01,456 care of those seeds and then one day, god will bless you with 715 00:37:01,456 --> 00:37:02,056 the harvest. 716 00:37:02,056 --> 00:37:05,106 And when you get that harvest, we want you to share it with 717 00:37:05,286 --> 00:37:05,507 others. 718 00:37:05,507 --> 00:37:08,911 So until we meet again, everybody, go out and do 719 00:37:08,992 --> 00:37:11,701 something special and great for somebody else. 720 00:37:11,701 --> 00:37:14,735 You're going to feel better about it and when you do, our 721 00:37:14,835 --> 00:37:18,264 homes, our community, our state and country will be a better 722 00:37:18,324 --> 00:37:21,000 place to live, work and raise our families. 723 00:37:21,000 --> 00:37:22,746 Everybody take care. 724 00:37:27,215 --> 00:37:29,202 Speaker 1: We hope you've enjoyed this episode of the 725 00:37:29,242 --> 00:37:30,806 Growing Our Future podcast. 726 00:37:30,806 --> 00:37:35,168 This show is sponsored by the Texas FFA Foundation, whose 727 00:37:35,248 --> 00:37:38,260 mission is to strengthen agricultural science education 728 00:37:38,641 --> 00:37:41,552 so students can develop their potential for personal growth, 729 00:37:41,893 --> 00:37:45,085 career success and leadership in a global marketplace. 730 00:37:45,085 --> 00:37:47,822 Learn more at mytexasffaorg.