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Working Momma

I was entered into a position that I was entirely unprepared for when I married the hubs. I became the chief secretary, executive financial analyst, accountant, payroller, organizational guru, marketing specialist and the business partner of a large farm/ranch operation.

Simply put I became the keeper of all things paperwork.

I very naively offered to take this on myself. In fact, I think I even smiled and said it was something I would 'like' to do.

Oh, silly, naive, young me...

I had zero first hand knowledge of how to run the financial side of an operation of this size. Although I grew up on a farm, I was more experienced with driving a tractor and fixing fence than I was with any of the financial aspects.

My Mom taught me how to balance a check book, and that was the extent of my financial training.

I currently handle all the day to day bills, as well as managing the paperwork for our large feedlot and custom silage cutting business.

My business partner is, of course, the hubs and for us life and work is intertwined. Our brainstorming and business sessions happen around the dinner table or late at night before we fall asleep.

I love the hubs. I see him when I wake up and throughout the day and when I fall asleep at night. We spend far more time together than the average couple would with separate jobs.

Sometimes I need room to grow and learn on my own, and I would definitely benefit from some business training.

So I am very excited about a new program that I'm going to be involved in this year. It's sponsored through First Dakota National Bank and there will be several meetings throughout the year that are geared towards expanding knowledge on the complex workings of farm operations.

I am looking forward to the opportunity to gain more insight on how to better manage my side of our family business. I'm also excited to get to network outside of the house for a change. It will be nice to get some hands on training for my job.

The first meeting is later this month. I plan on sharing some of the information with you as I go. I'm participating in a phone conference later today and I'll get more details then. I'll keep you posted.

Were you prepared for the job you've found yourself in or have you had to learn as you go? I love hearing from you.

Stay warm and have a lovely day.

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