Speaker 1: Welcome to the Growing Our Future podcast.
Speaker 1: In this show, the Texas FFA Foundation will take on a journey of exploration into agricultural science, education, leadership development and insights from subject matter experts and sponsors who provide the fuel to make dreams come true.
Speaker 1: Here's your host, Aaron Alejandro.
Speaker 2: Well, good morning, good afternoon, good evening or whenever you may be tuning in to the Growing Our Future podcast.
Speaker 2: Man, we're glad you're here.
Speaker 2: I'm so excited for y'all to meet today's guest, and we just enjoy bringing people on that are willing to share their time, their talent, their treasures, their testimony, their insights, expertise and experiences and to pour into our audience.
Speaker 2: You know, like we always say, if agriculture's taught us anything, it's taught us this If you want to know what the future is, grow it.
Speaker 2: If you want to grow a future, you got to plant the right seeds, and today is no different.
Speaker 2: I was hoping that, the time that we're doing this interview, I was really hoping I was going to be the first to get to say ladies and gentlemen, dr Sarah Sprayberry.
Speaker 2: But I understand that we're just on the cusp of the official title doctor, but we do have an incredible advocate here today.
Speaker 2: Sarah Sprayberry, thank you for joining us.
Speaker 2: Thank you for having me.
Speaker 3: I'm so excited.
Speaker 2: Well, I'm going to tell you a little bit more about Sarah and how I discovered her here in a second and why I wanted to bring her onto the show and talk about some things.
Speaker 2: But first, you know, sarah, we start off every episode, every episode of Growing Our Future, with a simple question, and that is what are you grateful for today?
Speaker 3: I love that question as we are on the cusp of reaching that doctorate degree.
Speaker 3: I've been very reflective lately and I'm just so grateful that I have the familial support that have gotten me to this point.
Speaker 3: It's been a decade of being in school and that takes a lot of support from those people who love me most, so I'm very grateful for them.
Speaker 2: Pretty cool when you think about it.
Speaker 3: It is, and not everybody gets to experience it, unfortunately.
Speaker 2: Well, it's funny that you said that.
Speaker 2: So I actually took a picture.
Speaker 2: I've got a picture it's on my social media pages of my family and I shared it with my kids one day and I said I know I'm going to sound a little bit sappy I said, but I want y'all to look at that picture.
Speaker 2: And I said, because this is our family and I said you've got to understand that the reason it means so much to me is I didn't grow up with that, and so when you hear people that share that appreciation, I appreciate the fact that you appreciate your family and obviously they are happy and I guarantee you, sarah I know, you know this they're proud of you, yeah, and because they know how hard you've worked to get to where you're at and this journey that you're on, that you're going to continue to do great things.
Speaker 2: So thank you for sharing that, of course.
Speaker 2: Okay.
Speaker 2: So years ago I remember there was this thing called MySpace and I started getting involved because I thought, well, this is kind of a neat little tool and then, all of a sudden, this thing called Facebook comes along, became a new twist on the old tool, if you will, absolutely.
Speaker 2: And as I became involved in the FFA and the foundation and my work with Texas Team Ag Ed, I was actually the one that set up the original Facebook pages for the FFA, the Ag Teachers Association and all of them, and I told them I said this is a communication tool that's coming, okay.
Speaker 2: And years ago, sarah, they would tell people that you need to have a website.
Speaker 2: Okay, so years ago we would say you've got to have a website, that you need to have a website, okay.
Speaker 2: So years ago we would say you've got to have a website.
Speaker 2: Today, you can't just have a website Today you have to have a web presence.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, you have to have a presence across the web.
Speaker 2: It could be a website, it can be your social media, it could be a blog, it could be the podcast, but you really there's so much transfer of information that you want to try to do what you can to create a web presence.
Speaker 2: And early on in my role at the Texas FFA Foundation, I've always been a strong advocate for agriculture.
Speaker 2: People that know me know that's one of my projects is how do we advocate for agriculture?
Speaker 2: How do we promote our farmers and ranchers and the people that take care of our natural resources and help feed the world?
Speaker 2: And so I've always been an advocate for agriculture.
Speaker 2: I've always tried to offer workshops on training people how to engage with these tools.
Speaker 2: But obviously I'm out there watching to engage with these tools, but obviously I'm out there watching.
Speaker 2: So I'm watching people on LinkedIn, I'm watching people on Facebook, on Instagram, on X or Twitter or TikTok, and one day I'm scrolling through and I saw one of the funniest videos that I have ever seen and here is this young lady doing a TikTok video dance to stock shows and how people show animals at stock shows.
Speaker 2: And I am rolling and I'm sitting there going.
Speaker 2: What a tool.
Speaker 2: This young lady is taking this topic that so many of us are familiar with.
Speaker 2: She's put it in a format that engages an audience that wants to have fun, that's still interested in learning.
Speaker 2: And lo and behold, I start following Sarah Sprayberry, the blooming advocate.
Speaker 2: I start following Sarah Sprayberry, the blooming advocate, and I just one day I thought you know, I've had the farm babe, michelle Miller, on here.
Speaker 2: I've been fortunate to have Dr Temple Brandon I've had people on that, I think represent advocates for agriculture.
Speaker 2: And, sarah, I just want you to know that, while you do it in a fun format, I want to say thank you, because we need people that are willing to step out there and do that.
Speaker 2: So why don't you take a moment here?
Speaker 2: Because I would like for you to take us on your journey.
Speaker 2: So take us through your.
Speaker 2: You know where you're from.
Speaker 2: You know your school, school experience to your college experience, to what led you to want to do this advocacy on this platform.
Speaker 3: Absolutely I would love to.
Speaker 3: So I'm born and raised in Berning, texas, so deep in the hill country, and like many other people, I did the FFA, I did 4-H, I showed hogs and so that led me to do animal science at Texas A&M because I think, like many other youth, I was like I'm going to be a veterinarian.
Speaker 3: And then I got to college and I was like no, I'm not side of things.
Speaker 3: So I really wanted to be with the farmers as well as the consumers.
Speaker 3: So I got knee deep into extension education as well as research, which are two of my big passions.
Speaker 3: So I was on the judging team and with that I really got into doing youth development and teaching kids about horses as well as judging.
Speaker 3: And then that led me eventually down the line to getting my master's in swine nutrition, so making people's bacon, as I always told people and then that led me into my first like true extension job with Texas Youth Livestock and Agriculture and so that's kind of what spurred the social media side of things is I got to do social media for them and I really was just.
Speaker 3: I got to do social media for them and I really was just.
Speaker 3: It was eyeopening to see how many people engaged in that, but then also were like, so like did not understand what it was.
Speaker 3: Like they would see the livestock shows that we would post and they'd be like, why are they whipping that pig?
Speaker 3: Like, why are they being aggressive?
Speaker 3: And so I was like whoa, and so that's kind of like hit the light bulb in me.
Speaker 3: I was like we got to do better.
Speaker 3: I think sometimes agriculturalists, we go on the defensive end, as I like to say with my football reference.
Speaker 3: We don't often take offense, and so I think we need to be better on the offense by just constantly producing educational materials on social media platforms to reach consumers so that they understand like we really are.
Speaker 3: Like farmers are the first conservationists and they are in the front line and they are the ones who care about the animals first.
Speaker 3: Listen, they if you have a dead animal, they're not making money right, so like they have to put animals first.
Speaker 3: They are the ones at 4 am breaking ice so that their cattle can get water, and so I think it's important that on social media, we can connect people to those farmers and understand that there's so many misconceptions and just really get the truth out there for them well, I appreciate the fact that you're doing that, and so you've probably crossed paths with dr bill Billy Zanellini.
Speaker 3: Yes, he was my boss.
Speaker 2: So Dr Zanellini and Dr Chris Bowman and I, we used to do a lot of along with Gene Hall when he was at the Texas Farm Bureau.
Speaker 2: We used to do a lot of ag advocacy workshops.
Speaker 2: One of the things that I like to talk about and I've shared this with Sarah before is and you alluded to this, sarah, by the way, this with Sarah before is, and you alluded to this, sarah, by the way there's a thing that we sometimes fail to recognize when we're promoting on social media, and that's emotional intelligence.
Speaker 2: And when you think about the statistics, I think it's 93% of Americans.
Speaker 2: Now let that sink in for a second.
Speaker 2: That's a pretty high number.
Speaker 2: 93% of Americans see a cat or a dog every single day, every single day.
Speaker 2: So if you just do a simple web search, google, whatever your platform is if you just do a simple search of cats or dogs, look at what imagery's pop up.
Speaker 2: It's, you know, hold and fluffy, pet and fee-fee.
Speaker 2: You know it's the emotional intelligence is very loving, caring.
Speaker 2: And then, in the world of production, agriculture, of farming and ranching and animal agriculture, we sometimes don't post anything until we get to the stock show, right.
Speaker 2: So all of a sudden, when you start looking at our images, it goes back to what you said.
Speaker 2: It's an image of oh well, why are they whipping that pig?
Speaker 2: Why are they strangling that steer and poking it with a stick?
Speaker 2: Exactly why are they choking that goat?
Speaker 2: And, oh my gosh, they're holding those turkeys upside down.
Speaker 2: Yes, you know, but anybody that knows the care that that student put into that animal, they would be blown away Exactly.
Speaker 2: But what I appreciate and I've shared this with Sarah before what I appreciate about what Sarah's doing and we hope to encourage other advocates is let's tell this incredible story of food.
Speaker 2: People sometimes don't understand the word agriculture, but everybody understands the word food and it's a chance for us to help people understand where that comes from.
Speaker 2: And so, sarah, take us through why you've chosen this platform.
Speaker 2: How do you pick your topics of what you want to share?
Speaker 2: That's I'm really intrigued by.
Speaker 2: How do you?
Speaker 2: Just what is it that spurs a thought that you say this would be fun to do?
Speaker 2: Take us through that.
Speaker 3: So I think a lot of it also stems from my PhD research is ag literacy in youth, and so things that I've actually heard you say, that I've worked with, that they thought was true, have spurred a lot of my tech talks, but also things that, like people will just comment and say I'm like, oh man, that is like no.
Speaker 3: I believe that, like you know, cattle are ruining the planet, agriculture is killing the planet, all these things, and so I take that and often I think when people see that on social media, they'll share it and they'll say this is not true.
Speaker 3: However, they're not thinking that when you share it, you're helping their initiative and not agriculture.
Speaker 3: So for me, I read that comment and I go we're going to make a TikTok about it and then I'm going to do the facts and do it in like an engaging, fun way.
Speaker 3: I think sometimes it gets a little intimidating, especially somebody who's never interacted with agriculture if they see some like jarring things, but if it's very relatable and you know, just dance and being silly, they're like, okay, I can like relate with this girl.
Speaker 3: And then they see those facts and they're like, okay, and like some people have even messaged me and they're like you made me like want to go and like research more to really understand agriculture in general.
Speaker 3: I'm like that's good.
Speaker 3: That's what we should be doing is just having an open conversation about what it is and the industry, and then you can make your informed decisions by having the facts.
Speaker 2: Well, that's good.
Speaker 2: So your strategy sometimes comes from just conversations.
Speaker 3: Oh yeah, a lot of conversation.
Speaker 3: I also look up.
Speaker 3: I've done this several times.
Speaker 3: Is I look up like myths about agriculture?
Speaker 3: I'll just Google it myself, or sometimes I'll even look to see, like what PETA has like just recently put out, so that I can try to put something else out there that has the true narrative of what's happening in agriculture.
Speaker 2: So Sarah said something a minute ago and I want to make sure that we share this with the audience because this is good stuff.
Speaker 2: It's real easy to see something that we find offensive, that we grow up in a world of food and agricultural production, whether it be plant or animal production and we see something that we don't like and so we immediately want to challenge it.
Speaker 2: And the unfortunately with the algorithms and the way technology works, if we're not careful in challenging it, we actually promote it absolutely and I kind of go back to what I was saying about emotional intelligence is that we've got to take charge of the message, as you have said, and start sharing the positive of what we do.
Speaker 2: I've not posted this yet, but a friend of mine years ago his youngest son, told me a story.
Speaker 2: It was about the day there was a blizzard and a snowstorm and ice in east texas and their cows were calving and they were driving around on their four-wheeler going around checking on the cows and they saw a little nose sticking out of the water at the tank and they rush over, jump in the frigid water and pull a baby calf that had just been born out.
Speaker 2: That was just barely hanging on, and what do they do?
Speaker 2: They immediately, they all take their jackets off.
Speaker 2: They wrap this baby, this newborn, in their jackets.
Speaker 2: They let the cow come on over to see her baby and then they very slowly drove that calf to the barn.
Speaker 2: They took the calf inside, they got it into hay, they got it where it was warm, the mom, and they nurtured that animal.
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 2: And I think sometimes we don't always share those stories.
Speaker 2: And those are the stories.
Speaker 2: As the development officer for Team Ag Ed, I've been doing this for 24 years and we've raised millions, of dollars, millions.
Speaker 2: And they say, aaron, how have y'all raised those monies?
Speaker 2: And I tell them a very similar story is I remember when I was growing up at Boys Ranch and my dorm parent, mr Chandler, gave me a sledgehammer.
Speaker 2: He told me to drive to the other side of the ranch and bust the water trough for the horses.
Speaker 2: It was five miles, it was in a snowstorm, five miles.
Speaker 2: It was in a snowstorm.
Speaker 2: And I remember driving over there and, and mr chandler and his old country wisdom, he just said, darling, do you get thirsty when it's cold?
Speaker 2: And I said, yes, sir.
Speaker 2: He said, don't you think those horses get thirsty too?
Speaker 2: yeah yes, sir.
Speaker 2: So I drove over there and I busted the water trough for the horses and companies that have nothing to do with agriculture, people that did not grow up in FFA or agriculture, like you or I did, sarah.
Speaker 2: I always tell them, I said, the thing that separates our kids from everybody else is that in the world of agriculture, if we don't do our job, something does something does yeah.
Speaker 2: Think about that and what an incredible intrinsic value system.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: That we're putting in young people to know that what they do is important.
Speaker 2: Look at you.
Speaker 2: I mean you're a great example of that.
Speaker 2: I mean I'm proud of what you've done, I'm proud of where you're going, I'm proud of this incredible voice that you're sharing on technology platforms.
Speaker 2: But it's because somewhere along the way, you got something instilled in you that your fellow man depends on you.
Speaker 2: The things in your care, depending the natural resources, depend on you, and you've taken it seriously yeah is that fair to say absolutely?
Speaker 2: yeah so let's talk about this, because I'm hoping that you can inspire which I know you will somebody else that may decide.
Speaker 2: I want to go online and I want to be positive about decide.
Speaker 2: I want to go online and I want to be positive about agriculture and food production.
Speaker 2: And if you were going to give some ag students tips on being online and sharing positive messages, what would those tips be?
Speaker 2: What would you tell them?
Speaker 3: So this actually makes me go back to.
Speaker 3: I was just at a conference for ag educators and they were talking about NIL.
Speaker 3: I'm a big sports girl, so your name, image and likeness that we see with these athletes they talked about it with your department, but I thought about it in the way of agriculture.
Speaker 3: What I would say to youth is you have to remember that your name, image and likeness is connected to the ag industry.
Speaker 3: You are probably maybe the one person that is going to interact with agriculture, so one person who's never experienced agriculture and then you are the person that they are going to do.
Speaker 3: So you need to make sure that your name, image and likeness is representing agriculture well, so you want it to be a positive interaction.
Speaker 3: You don't want to be negative.
Speaker 3: We don't want to put them down for not understanding something Because listen, I mean, not everybody gets the beautiful opportunity of being an FFA and really interacting with our industry.
Speaker 3: That is so wonderful, and so I think when we're online sometimes we tend to make fun of people who don't understand things.
Speaker 3: But what.
Speaker 3: I've learned is that when you come at a level head and you just really try to make it engaging and fun and positive, that people are going to be more swayed to understand or listen to your side of things.
Speaker 2: Wow, okay.
Speaker 2: So I want every listener I know every listener knows this because you hear us talk about almost every podcast be a lifelong learner.
Speaker 2: Yeah, don't ever quit learning.
Speaker 2: Go back to agriculture.
Speaker 2: I always tell people, when you're green you grow, when you're ripe, you're ripe.
Speaker 2: So don't quit growing, just always be listening.
Speaker 2: And Sarah just gave me something I'd never heard before.
Speaker 2: So I'm learning today.
Speaker 2: I love it.
Speaker 2: Sarah shared N-I-L yeah Name, image and likeness and everybody that knows me, sarah, on social media platforms knows that one of my handles most people know me by my handle Live your Brand.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: And so what I tell young people is that what you share, what you comment on, what you engage in, that becomes your brand, and when people start looking at you for a job or people are starting to scrub your character or who you are, they're going to look at that platform and they're going to say what are you an expert in?
Speaker 2: And so I like to tell young people that what you share like comment on, shows me the three areas that you're an expert, and I don't know if you know the story or not, but I'll share it very quickly.
Speaker 2: But where Live your Brand came from is.
Speaker 2: There was a young man from Jacksboro, texas, named Johnny Callen, and Johnny Callen was a Ford leadership scholar and Johnny Callum is one of the sharpest young men I think I've ever met and he unfortunately died in a tragic automobile accident on a way to a stock show, and executives from Ford Motor Company, people from all over the country, came to Johnny's funeral.
Speaker 2: I was actually keynoting a speech out in Las Vegas and I remember, in front of an empty room full of chairs, I talked about Johnny Callen and I said, if you pulled up that 17-year-old boy's social media, he always talked about FFA, agriculture and leadership, and I said Johnny Callen was an example of how to live your brand, and so from that point on, I just said it's time to start talking about live your brand.
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 2: So the live, your brand icon, came from the legacy of Johnny Callen.
Speaker 2: So Sarah is an example of that.
Speaker 2: If you follow Sarah on her social media, it's not going to take you long.
Speaker 2: Number one she's got a sense of humor.
Speaker 2: Number two, she's got a passion for all things agriculture, and she also wants to be helpful, and all that comes out in what you share, sarah.
Speaker 2: So I think it's important, like you said, for young people to know that on your platforms.
Speaker 2: I mean, you know, think about it, and I think you would agree with me if we, if you and I, could go sit down with every eighth grader, every middle school eighth grader, and say listen, you're fixing to go into high school.
Speaker 2: Do me a favor, find three things that you really want to be good at, three things that you really care about, and for the next four years, share a lot of stuff about those three things.
Speaker 2: And then, when you go to college, I want you to do the same thing.
Speaker 2: I want you to find those three things and I want you to share as much as you can about those three things.
Speaker 2: Would you agree that when they get ready to look for a job, they're ready yeah.
Speaker 2: Pretty easy, don't you think?
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 2: Why do you think it would be easy?
Speaker 3: Well, I mean, I'll say from personal experience that I'm looking for faculty positions right now and I guarantee they have looked at my TikToks and so when they look at that, they do see that I mean I present myself as an ag literacy person in youth development and so when they're actually looking at social media, like oh, she actually is living out what she says, that she is.
Speaker 3: So it's just shows and it's kind of an artifact to be like, yeah, no, she really stands by her word, because actions speak louder than words and we know that.
Speaker 3: And so an action on social media definitely says a lot about you.
Speaker 2: Wow, that's good, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2: So I hope that young people hear this.
Speaker 2: That it's this is a key takeaway is that you know another way of putting it.
Speaker 2: That I sometimes put, like if I were talking to your FFA class back in the day at Bernie, is I would always ask them.
Speaker 2: I said, tell me about your business.
Speaker 2: And they all look at me puzzled and they say, well, mr Alejandro, I don't have a business.
Speaker 2: I said, yeah, you do, you're it?
Speaker 2: Do you get to work on time, customer service, friendly?
Speaker 2: Can you communicate well?
Speaker 2: Do you get along with other peers?
Speaker 2: You see, I think to your point what you were saying.
Speaker 2: Your your nil, your name image likeness that, that's it is so not only are you living your personal brand, but hopefully, maybe somewhere along the way, whether it's agriculture or the company that you work for, maybe you find something that spurs your passion to say I want to share more about this.
Speaker 2: Just you, you've become passionate about sharing for agriculture.
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 2: What are some of the challenges that you've found in communicating and challenges that you've found in advocating challenges that you've found in advocating that's a fantastic question.
Speaker 3: I think, regardless of what you do, you're always going to find somebody that's going to want to put you down and somebody that is going to you know, people are very confident when they're behind a screen, right, and so they really going to be those keyboard warriors that are going to come for you.
Speaker 3: And people have really going to be those keyboard warriors that are going to come for you.
Speaker 3: And people have told me that, like you're like wow, your PhD must not mean anything because you don't know anything, and I'm like, oh, wow, that's so that's a heavy thing, and so I mean that's going to happen in life.
Speaker 3: I mean, regardless on social media, it's going to happen in real life and I think it's important that you don't let that get you down and you just have grit and just keep going and know that what you're passionate about is important, and take that and just keep running with it.
Speaker 3: I mean you can't let the haters get you.
Speaker 3: And that's probably the biggest thing that I've had to overcome on social media is because, especially as you continue to get followers, you also continue to get to more views and then more people see it and then I get more negative comments that's awesome.
Speaker 2: That's really good.
Speaker 2: Um, I like what you said.
Speaker 2: I a lot of times people hear me talk about the three r's yeah and I had people tell me that to put this country back on track, we need to get back to the basics.
Speaker 2: You know reading, writing and arithmetic and I'm like you know, before I took the foundation job, I used to work in a boot camp.
Speaker 2: I worked with true and offenders and I worked in a prison and everybody that I worked with could read, write and do math at a functional level.
Speaker 2: I said but you're right about the three R's, but I believe the three R's are respect, responsibility and resiliency, and I think that holds true on social media.
Speaker 2: I think it holds true in our families and our communities and our life.
Speaker 2: We can disagree with somebody, but you can still be respectful.
Speaker 2: You can take responsibility for your own actions.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you can also be resilient, but absolutely I love it, have a grit it, have some grit it.
Speaker 2: Yes, you know god, god did not create failures, god did not create flops.
Speaker 2: He created us all for greatness, just by design alone.
Speaker 2: You have everything to stand firm on and you know people can disagree, and but do it in a way that's respectful and you don't.
Speaker 2: You don't have to be hateful or mean and being disagreeable.
Speaker 2: Agree, say that again yeah let's talk about leadership for a minute, because we're planting seeds, right.
Speaker 2: So let's talk about leadership.
Speaker 2: You're, you're about to get your phd, you're working your way through.
Speaker 2: You're going to have an incredible career.
Speaker 2: You're going to have an influence.
Speaker 2: You know one of the statements that I like to share and I need to make sure you hear this because this is you.
Speaker 2: The essence of leadership is to plant trees under whose shade you may never sit.
Speaker 2: You have no idea the impact that you're having on other people's lives and how.
Speaker 2: What you do, sarah, could be that you know you might inspire my granddaughter's mentor one day.
Speaker 2: You know you may be the one that gives information to my grandson's president one day, you never know.
Speaker 2: So the essence of leadership is to plant trees under whose shade we may never set.
Speaker 2: If you were also having the opportunity to talk to kids, what would be some leadership tips you would give them in terms of you know, if you want to be a better leader, do these things.
Speaker 2: What would you say?
Speaker 3: I think the first one would be kind of, what you were talking about is kindness, because I know that in academia, often when people kind of get up in the ranks and they start to get to tenure, they kind of saying if I can impact one person, that person still matters right, because we don't know where that person's going to go and they could impact even more people.
Speaker 3: And so I think that is probably step one is just always be humble, stay humble, stay kind.
Speaker 3: And then another one is adaptability.
Speaker 3: I think, especially in this world today, you have to learn how to be adaptable and be able to take those hits and just keep rolling with it and be able to, even if somebody tells you no, adapt and pump yourself up and then go again and that kind of goes back with.
Speaker 3: That.
Speaker 3: Grit is just, somebody may tell you no, but somebody may also tell you yes, and you just have to keep going and just try to strive.
Speaker 3: And if you have that passion, you just got to follow it.
Speaker 2: Making notes.
Speaker 2: That's good.
Speaker 2: If you have not already read it, I'm going to recommend a book for you.
Speaker 2: Yeah, so one of my board members.
Speaker 2: There was a late, great motivational speaker named Zig Ziglar, and Zig Ziglar was famous.
Speaker 2: I mean, he's one of the world's most famous motivational speakers.
Speaker 2: His son, Tom Ziglar, is on the Foundation Board of Directors, and so Tom and I have a lot of conversations and he wrote a book that hit coming right out of COVID, called Ten Leadership Virtues for Disruptive Times of COVID called 10 Leadership Virtues for Disruptive Times 10 Leadership Virtues and kindness is one of those, by the way and he bases leadership on virtues and when you put virtues in place in your life, they come out in the way that you lead.
Speaker 2: They become empathetic when they need to be empathetic.
Speaker 2: They become coachable when they need to be empathetic.
Speaker 2: They become coachable when they need to become coachable.
Speaker 2: They're kind when they need to be kind, they're humble.
Speaker 2: So you said something there.
Speaker 2: I just wanted to share that with you because that was really good.
Speaker 2: He also says this you know we talk a lot about like.
Speaker 2: A lot of times when I talk to businesses and organizations, I ask them I said did anybody see COVID coming?
Speaker 1: No, we didn't.
Speaker 2: So what do we do?
Speaker 2: We expect the best, we prepare for the worst, but we capitalize on whatever comes.
Speaker 2: I like that.
Speaker 2: That's what Ziegler said.
Speaker 2: He said you expect the best, prepare for the worst, but capitalize on whatever comes.
Speaker 2: And so I love when you said be adaptable.
Speaker 2: And so I'm going to show you how timeless that is.
Speaker 2: Anybody that will go back in time and find any of my old ICEV videos, all the way back into the 80s you will find that one of the three tips that I give young people is to be adaptable.
Speaker 2: If there's one thing that we can count on is there's going to be more disruption coming.
Speaker 2: Disruption is not going away.
Speaker 2: There is more disruption coming.
Speaker 2: We're going to have to get comfortable being uncomfortable.
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 2: And through that uncomfortableness we're going to pick up Sarah's wisdom right there.
Speaker 2: It's going to be uncomfortable, but we're still going to be kind.
Speaker 2: We're going to be uncomfortable, but we're going to learn to adapt.
Speaker 2: We're going to be uncomfortable, but we're going to remain positive and look for the best.
Speaker 2: We're going to be uncomfortable, but we're still going to stay focused on our goals.
Speaker 2: That target that beckons.
Speaker 2: We're still going to push forward.
Speaker 2: This lady right here is a great example of it.
Speaker 2: So you lived through the COVID years.
Speaker 2: You push through your dream your target and through that process you've practiced these things and they show which is why you've got this branding that you have.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: So well, sarah, I just want to say thank you for taking time.
Speaker 2: Do you happen to know she's been a guest on this show?
Speaker 2: By the way, do you happen to know Madeline Bar?
Speaker 2: I don't she's from bernie is she really?
Speaker 3: I should look her up madeline um.
Speaker 2: She sold a pig at the county stock show for, I think, thirty thousand dollars yeah and then she turned around and donated it all to saint jude's children's hospital that's amazing.
Speaker 2: And she herself was a child with cancer and they cured her.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: And through FFA and through her project.
Speaker 2: She said I want to help somebody else.
Speaker 3: I love that, so I've had two guests from Barney Texas.
Speaker 2: On the Growing Our Future podcast.
Speaker 3: They raised some good kids.
Speaker 2: Let's do something right, madeline.
Speaker 2: Thank you, hey.
Speaker 2: By the way, before you leave, we always like to have one last fun final question.
Speaker 2: I'm just curious what is the best concert you've ever been to?
Speaker 3: oh, that's gonna be hard.
Speaker 2: I feel like you're gonna judge me I'm talking to a social media influencer who's putting content out all the time and she's afraid I'm about to judge her.
Speaker 2: That was the most classic comment of this entire interview.
Speaker 2: Go ahead, sarah.
Speaker 2: What's the best concert you've ever?
Speaker 3: been well.
Speaker 3: I'm a swifty, so it's gonna have to be the taylor swift concert.
Speaker 3: I know really, yeah, which one.
Speaker 3: So I went back in like the og days.
Speaker 3: So when I was 15 I went in san antonio and that was probably one of the best experiences.
Speaker 3: I went with my mama so I think that's great by the way memories um.
Speaker 2: So everybody that knows me knows I am a diehard, diehard bruce springsteen and jimmy buffett fan oh so I'm diehard bruce jimmy yeah and so I had a friend of mine who was helping me understand the, the genre of swifties of taylor swift.
Speaker 2: And he told me, and all he had to say was this he said aaron taylor is the bruce springsteen of this generation.
Speaker 2: And when.
Speaker 2: I know how big Bruce Springsteen is, and then I see how big Taylor is.
Speaker 2: Even though it may be a different genre of music for me, I appreciate it out of respect for the talent.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: So I think that's great, by the way.
Speaker 2: So I can only assume you watch the Super Bowl.
Speaker 3: Well, yeah, of course I did.
Speaker 2: That's great.
Speaker 2: Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us for another episode of the Growing Our Future podcast.
Speaker 2: We appreciate you stopping by and we appreciate Sarah.
Speaker 2: Sarah, thank you, sarah, thank you, yeah, thank you Coming on and sharing with us and kind of giving us an example of what it's like to get out there and share your brand and your NIL and how you can use that to promote where our food comes from, and we just appreciate you for taking some time to come on and share that and we wish you the best.
Speaker 2: I hope that the next time we talk you'll officially be Dr Sprayberry.
Speaker 3: Yep.
Speaker 2: And that we all get a front row seat to your career, because I suspect you're going to plant some incredible trees.
Speaker 3: Thank you Appreciate that.
Speaker 2: So, until our paths all cross again, everybody remember, if you want to know what the future is, grow it.
Speaker 2: That means you got to plant the right seeds, you've got to take care of those seeds and then one day, god will bless you with the harvest.
Speaker 2: And when you get that harvest, we want you to share it with others.
Speaker 2: So until we meet again, everybody, go out and do something special and great for somebody else.
Speaker 2: You're going to feel better about it and when you do, our homes, our community, our state and country will be a better place to live, work and raise our families.
Speaker 2: Everybody take care.
Speaker 1: We hope you've enjoyed this episode of the Growing Our Future podcast.
Speaker 1: This show is sponsored by the Texas FFA Foundation, whose mission is to strengthen agricultural science education so students can develop their potential for personal growth, career success and leadership in a global marketplace.
Speaker 1: Learn more at mytexasffaorg.