Gut Check Aaron from High Spirit Farm had been pounding the pavement, talking with chefs and grocers about buying his produce. It was early March when we sat down, and he was pretty sure that he had five commitments for purchasing throughout the season; he felt confident he could sell $45,000 worth of produce.   […]

Why Julia Chooses Quickbooks Excerpted from The Farmer’s Office by Julia Shanks QuickBooks (QB) is the industry-standard accounting software for small businesses, including farms. At a minimum, it’s a jacked-up checkbook register. At its best, it is a powerful business tool that provides the information you need to make important decisions about your business. If you have a basic […]

Setting Up Quickbooks Excerpted from The Farmer’s Office by Julia Shanks The Initial Setup When you first open up QuickBooks, you will want to Create a New Company and select Advanced Setup. QB will guide you through an interview process. Following are the questions QB asks, with my suggestions on how to answer (and set your preferences). You may […]

Setting Up Quickbooks Excerpted from The Farmer’s Office by Julia Shanks The Initial Setup When you first open up QuickBooks, you will want to Create a New Company and select Advanced Setup. QB will guide you through an interview process. Following are the questions QB asks, with my suggestions on how to answer (and set your preferences). You may […]

Dos and Don’ts of Presenting to Investors Excerpted from The Farmer’s Office by Julia Shanks • Do explain your business concept clearly in one to three sentences. Don’t run on and on. Readers of your business plan want to be able to quickly capture the essence of your business. The more concise your words, the better. • […]

Tools for Success Become a successful homesteader, farmer, and sustainable leader by managing time, money, and your business more efficiently by the following ways. Every second counts when you exclaim, “there isn’t enough time in the day!” Some of the biggest challenges that many people strive to improve on include time management, scheduling life around […]