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Leading and Learning from the Future of Agriculture with Scott Stump
31 Plays16 days ago
Great leadership isn’t about titles—it’s about trust, humility, and impact. In this episode, Scott Stump, CEO of the National FFA Organization, shares his experience on what it means to lead with integrity, empower teams, and stay open to growth. He shares a wealth of knowledge around the future leaders of the agriculture industry and how seasoned professionals can accelerate their potential.
Scott shares more on:
- The Current State of Ag Education: Where he sees gems and gaps
- Trends for the Future of Agriculture: His thoughts on new technologies and innovations
- Practicing Humility: The importance of learning from past mistakes
With Scott’s personal experience as a leader and educator, this conversation will challenge you to connect with future agriculture leaders and embrace your unique leadership skills.
Connect with Scott
- Connect on LinkedIn
About the National FFA Organization
- Visit their Website
- Connect on LinkedIn
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About The Cultivating Leaders Podcast
Real stories. Practical advice. Tangible growth. Join The Cultivating Leaders Podcast, brought to you by Agriculture Future of America, as we explore what it takes to lead in food, agriculture, and beyond. Whether you’re just starting out or leading at the highest level, this podcast is your go-to resource for leadership that matters. Listen now and start cultivating your leadership journey.
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Transcript
Introduction to Scott Stump and FFA's Legacy
00:00:00
Speaker
Oh, we are an organization rich in tradition. So my mantra on this and what keeps me going and what I try and share with teachers that holds me balanced in that is that we as an organization must remain rooted in our traditions because it's those traditions that rural America that have led to the incredible impact that we've had for nearly a hundred years.
00:00:26
Speaker
Welcome to the Cultivating Leaders podcast, where we get inside the minds of leaders to harvest great ideas and lessons that help you grow as a difference maker in food and agriculture.
Scott Stump's Journey and Influence
00:00:36
Speaker
I'm your host and curiosity captain, Nicole Ercig.
00:00:39
Speaker
Today, i am joined by Scott Stump, CEO of the National FFA Organization. Scott has spent most of his career focusing on agricultural education through many roles, FFA student, parent to FFA members, FFA advisor, ag teacher, and now CEO of an organization that I know many of us in agriculture consider a huge contributor to our careers in this field.
00:01:00
Speaker
Also in 2018, he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as the Assistant Secretary of Career, Technical, and Adult Education for the U.S. Department of Education, where he served until 2021. Scott, welcome to the pod. Ah, Nicole, thank you. It's pleasure to be here. What did I miss from your bio?
00:01:17
Speaker
No, I don't think you missed thised much in there. I would say, though, that the the proudest part of it was being a parent to three FFA members that, yeah, built their leadership skills that prepared them for their current careers today through our organization.
00:01:29
Speaker
Love that. Okay, so Scott, what made you decide to dedicate so much of your life and career to agriculture and career in technical education? Yeah, so it started with my...
00:01:40
Speaker
Dad, being my FFA advisor and agriculture teacher, and we all had a choice. There's five of us kids, and we didn't have to be in agriculture and FFA, but we did all say yes to it.
00:01:51
Speaker
But through that, actually went away for a little while because I went to Purdue a University, my first major being biochemical agriculture engineering. I was going to be saving the world in labs, and probably would have been either at Corteva or Bayer or BASF and Crop. dot So any of those spaces was what I was looking at.
Transformative Experiences and FFA's Growth
00:02:08
Speaker
But the real pivotal moment for me was an experience, and that was being a state FFA officer in Indiana. And it's through these experiences that I tell lots of students today that we find what we're truly called to do.
00:02:19
Speaker
And I was blessed to find that when I was 21 years old, a student yeah running around the state of Indiana in classrooms every day. And that's where I found that my calling was building people and then pouring into people.
00:02:30
Speaker
And ultimately, then through the rest of the body of work, pouring into systems that build people. I love that so much, Scott. So we have a lot more in common than I think I even realized. I'm also ah a past FFA state officer, and I had a very similar experience. like I found my career path as an FFA state officer traveling around to ag classrooms, but we did homestays at night. And so I got to meet different people in all different facets of Oregon agriculture, from a family that grew Christmas trees on their farm, to onion farmers, to nursery and greenhouse, to
00:03:00
Speaker
Typical, like traditional cattle ranchers. And I realized these people's stories are so cool. I want to tell the stories of agriculture. So wonderful. Love that. So many great stories that that start and careers, honestly, that start in FFA.
00:03:13
Speaker
So for any of us who are disconnected from the agriculture classroom today, been a long time since maybe we wore the blue jacket. Can you paint a picture of what the scope of FFA looks like today? And what's the biggest challenge that you see for FFA?
00:03:25
Speaker
Yeah, so FFA ah scope has grown since when I was a member. when yeah as i was yeah Just as a state officer, we talked about earlier, there was about 433,000 students nationwide, and that was in the late 80s, early 90s.
00:03:39
Speaker
ah Today, we have ah over a million, 1,027,000 students, fifth grade through eighth grade, or fifth grade through seniors in high school and beyond high school all across this country, 9,000 communities and stronger than ever.
00:03:52
Speaker
Now, the biggest challenge, you would say, is then how do we reach each of those students and ensure that they are getting the promise that we provide to them through our mission, which is that we're going to develop their potential through premier leadership, personal growth, and career success. And so one of the core planks of our current strategic plan is empowering that system of state leaders and local teachers, because that's where the real work of our organization takes place.
00:04:15
Speaker
Absolutely. Takes lots of people, a lot especially special ag teachers to to make
Evolving Agricultural Education and Technology
00:04:20
Speaker
this work. What do you see as the biggest gap in the area of ag education today? Yeah, the biggest gap, you know, and we've done, yeah, over the past couple of years, a bit of an analysis because we we were looking for those gaps, and Nicole, of where do we need to evolve our programs and experiences to ensure that they are relevant to our industry and that they are relevant to today's students?
00:04:40
Speaker
Because Gen Z and Gen Alpha are very different than the preceding generations. And agriculture, especially in the area of ag tech, is growing dramatically. And so one of those areas that we identified was that space of ag tech and the fact that We need, through our system, prepare students both in ag ed and then through competitions in FFA for both the operating and the applying of the new technology, as well as the troubleshooting and repairing.
00:05:09
Speaker
I was just out at the Commodity Classic and every one of the big equipment manufacturers and all of the, well, you think about the the different spray technology that's out there now that actually has its own eyes to look c inside a plant and then with the AI magic on the back end can identify that plant and immediately in seconds, probably fractions of a second, apply exactly the right crop protection item needed at a fraction of the cost of other items because you're using so much less. And so ah the techs are going to be needed to keep all of that equipment up and running are going to be different than in the past. And so we've got to be ready to meet that challenge.
00:05:44
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. There's so much more technology than I think. And you're right, we just need different skill sets than we have ever needed in agriculture before. so I'm curious, Scott, there is so much history and rich tradition with FFA, and there is also so much innovation and change happening in agriculture.
00:06:01
Speaker
How do you balance the two as you think about innovating for the future, but staying true to the core tenets of FFA and American agriculture? Oh, we are an organization rich in tradition. And so my mantra on this and what keeps me going and what I try and share with teachers that holds me balanced in that is that we as an organization must remain rooted in our traditions because it's those traditions that rural America that have led to the incredible impact that we've had for nearly 100 years. But I always say rooted in tradition.
00:06:33
Speaker
equipped for the future and that's where we want our students to be. And so I don't see those as polar opposites. What I see them needing to go in is hand in hand using the the traditional ways that we've operated, what our students are known for, which is work ethic, which is responsibility, which is leadership, and then employing that in new technologies to make sure they're equipped for what the agriculture industry needs today.
00:06:54
Speaker
So a lot of people listening are well into their careers in agriculture. What do you think this next generation of agriculture leaders needs from the current generation of agriculture leaders?
Mentorship and Talent Retention in Agriculture
00:07:05
Speaker
Yeah, I'm a big believer in mentorship.
00:07:07
Speaker
And so if there's a way through connecting and partnering with the local FFA chapter to volunteer as a mentor, if that be at a state convention, of volunteering to judge and provide feedback to students as they grow, you know making those connections.
00:07:23
Speaker
Because in those mentorships, that's where students will be retained in the industry. Because right now, yeah ni call there's a war for talent going on. So over 7.4 million jobs open all across the United States in all industries.
00:07:37
Speaker
That means agriculture needing those professionals is fighting against every other industry. Well, if we can get our current leaders out and having conversations with young people in FFA chapters or 4-H clubs across the country and inviting them in and telling them about the great opportunities and the problems that these students will get to solve, I think we can build up that pipeline.
00:07:57
Speaker
Yeah, it's getting students exposed to the vast amount of careers that exist in agriculture. i think we can see it as we just talked about the technical needs that we're going to have and the different kinds of jobs for the future.
00:08:08
Speaker
But I think a lot of times from from a student aspect or a young person or a someone who didn't grow up in agriculture, it's really there's just less exposure to the vast amount of different opportunities that exist within the field today.
Inspiring Future Generations and AI in Agriculture
00:08:22
Speaker
Absolutely. And students, you know, young kids are very interested in the science of living things, whether be a plant or an animal, there's a fascination. And how do we harvest that early, which is why we went down to fifth grade, and then get those students into the wonderful career options that are out there.
00:08:37
Speaker
Yes, I'm curious, Scott, your thoughts on this. As we look to the future of the agriculture industry and and you're getting exposure to the the students that will be leading our industry in the future, what do you think are leadership trends or challenges that ag organizations will face maybe in the next 10 years?
00:08:55
Speaker
trends or challenges as we think about the next 10 years? Yeah, so without question, where we're all going to have to reconcile and come to groups with and figure out how to apply artificial intelligence in this space of really looking at how we approach the world of agriculture with the data sets driving decision making in different ways.
00:09:16
Speaker
I think as ah an entity in agriculture, we will continue to become more efficient as in productive as we have over the past century of incredible production growths across all aspects of our industry.
00:09:29
Speaker
And at the same time, though, I do think we're still going to, especially with the you know Gen Z and Gen Alpha coming on board, going to be looking at problems in different ways because the the students that we're working with today, we've had such ah an expansion of our agri-science work and ag research as a part of a student's SAE that they are looking for problems to solve.
00:09:50
Speaker
And that excites that excites me about where we're headed because i it gives me hope that Yeah, we are going to be able to feed the extra billion people on the planet by 2050.
Balancing Tradition and Digitalization
00:10:01
Speaker
That's awesome. That does make me excited too. ah So you talked about technology a lot and how that's going to impact agriculture, but you also talked about part of the reason that you're in the role that you're in is because of people and your desire to develop people. I'm curious from your perspective, in a world that's increasingly moving digital, in an agriculture industry that's increasingly getting more technical, how do you think leaders in agriculture can stay authentic and human-centered?
00:10:24
Speaker
I remember vividly just ah the fall of 2021 as we were coming out of the pandemic and getting back to gathering together. We actually had a firm in that was helping us do a talent search for a position here in the building. And we're going to do side discussion, but the side discussion came about the from the contractor saying, yeah, we've actually put out a whole series on presence and that what it means to be present in a face-to-face environment.
00:10:50
Speaker
And yeah, the you it is different than a virtual environment and that there's Well, when you think about the the workspaces, if you're not bumping into someone in the hallway that might be a future supervisor of yours or a chance to be a recommender of you to another position within the enterprise, you're not meeting with those individuals in the hallways that can be your mentor or guide to what that next step in your career is.
00:11:14
Speaker
I think there is credible need for that moving forward of really ah leaning into those relationships as a big part of the formation of any career. Absolutely.
00:11:25
Speaker
Totally true. What would you say to someone? ah Because I feel like a lot of people listening, whether you're young professional or maybe you're someone in your career, I feel like leaders tend to be kind of type A. We like to have a plan, ah vision. Okay, here's what the next step is.
00:11:39
Speaker
What advice would you give ah for being okay with not knowing how the journey of your career ends and going on the journey?
Advice on Career Management and Leadership Traits
00:11:47
Speaker
ae I think that is a critical aspect of being okay with that and and being in the moment and controlling what you can control and then setting aside the rest of that through whatever method you have.
00:12:02
Speaker
For me, that's prayer and other places to then say, the end of the day, let's point the ship in the right direction. And then there will be waves, there will be winds. And so it's okay to not always land exactly where you think you're going to land.
00:12:18
Speaker
I love that so much. Any advice for how you know when maybe a season is over and it's time to move on? Yeah, either. I mean, there are a few of them. Part of that was, you know, at the time that i shifted and moved to Colorado from Indiana, ah we had just moved the convention. We had been in Louisville for two years. And just the the the sheer goal of getting the convention moved from one city to the next. And when that goal was done, really believe there's a change in me of going, okay, do I want to be a convention manager for the rest of my life for National FFA and manage the national officers. and And I had to say, no, maybe this is... So when there's a pivot point of something going on in your work, ah reflect on it. and And I think that's your best way to then to say, no, am I still needed here or am I being called somewhere else?
00:13:07
Speaker
Are you a gut decision maker, Scott, or... No, no. My ah top five strengths would be strategic, arranging. And so I spend too much time in my own head thinking about things. So yeah, not ah not a lot of good decision making. Are you a list maker or how do how do you make a tough decision then?
00:13:27
Speaker
Oh yeah, pros and cons, list it out, yeah ah map it out and see, check all of the alternatives and then finally come back and say, oh yeah, this is where we need to go. For some people too slow in my decision making. But do know that I tend to believe I get you know good outcomes at the end of the day. Yes.
00:13:42
Speaker
Well, I think ah we need both, right? that's As we think about leaders, I am a gut decision maker. So I am someone who'm like, my gut says this, let's move forward. So I need people like you to slow me down and ask, have you considered this?
00:13:55
Speaker
So it's healthy. Okay, well, I want to transition a little bit and talk about you and your position and in your career lessons. I'm curious, what has surprised you the most about leading National FFA? What has surprised me the most? And I was here, not leading, but on staff for a decade prior to going to Colorado and working in state leadership there. And so in coming back, I'll tell you, the you know when you jump from 500,000 over a million members,
00:14:23
Speaker
the width and breadth of those that students and the the variety of lived experiences that they come from both surprises and excites me because it means that we're providing access to a wider number of students to step into our industry.
00:14:37
Speaker
And then I'm just always surprised, elated, so thankful for the tremendous support of both our corporate partners and individual givers that come alongside. And yes, they're looking at it as an investment of future consumers and future employees.
00:14:51
Speaker
and future innovation. But at the same time, they're also doing it because they really want the industry of agriculture to continue to grow and thrive and deliver the promise that American agriculture always has.
00:15:03
Speaker
Absolutely. So as we look to the future of agriculture, I think there's a lot of uncertainty, right? And especially as you're developing this next generation of talent, I'm curious, how do you handle moments when you don't have all the answers or you need to make decisions with ah uncertainty or you don't, you don't have all the pieces to the puzzle.
00:15:23
Speaker
You know, i had your timing is perfect because a couple of weeks ago when I was back in Colorado, my wife and I stopped for Chinese food. And yeah the fortune said, seek guidance from all around you. So this is my answer to your question.
00:15:39
Speaker
But, you know, absolutely. I reach out. My decision-making tendencies are not one to do it alone, but to do it in a group setting. think I learned that chapter officer all the way back at Prairie Heights High School in Northeastern Indiana. Mm-hmm.
00:15:51
Speaker
Yep. Good counsel is always helpful to get through those uncertain times. so What is a leadership lesson that you have learned from students in FFA that you carry with you every day? Leadership lesson from students. So students that I've worked with in FFA.
00:16:06
Speaker
And this could be from your time as an ag advisor. It could be from your time as CEO. I'm just curious. ah You know, one of the lessons, that well, and I would just say this is one that I, a leadership ah habit or routine that I swear by that gets proven again and again by students is that one of the core pieces for leadership is humility.
00:16:24
Speaker
And that, yeah, and and you you can't expect everything you do to be right, to be perfect, and And so you have to own up on that at that time. And then as a part of that, giving the credit absolutely to others that deserve it as a part of that process. And just just having that humble approach as a leader is what I've learned from the students. you know Whether that be looking at our national officers that I had the um wonderful opportunity to train and deploy for a seven-year period that are so incredibly talented.
00:16:55
Speaker
But to see in them the the the humility of being able to step off that stage after national convention and we're return back to a life that is not as, want to say glorious or as fame, but to then take their next steps into truly emerging into their next leadership journey in life. And to me, I've seen so many of them do that with such great humility. and That served them well as they were then emerging into the career of their choice.
00:17:22
Speaker
Yeah. That's a tough transition. You go from being a rock star to, ok now I'm entering the career field and and I'm not the not the one in the spotlight anymore. Love that you said humility. Do you mind practicing it with me for a second? Absolutely. What is a leadership mistake that you've made and what did it teach you about yourself?
00:17:39
Speaker
Leadership mistake that I have made and what did I learn about myself? When I was in charge of National FFA Convention, so and it was moving from Kansas City to Louisville, number one, it was a daunting task because we had been in Kansas City for 71 years and a lot of things just happened. People in the community doing them or people at facilities doing them and none of our staff really knew why or how they happened, but they just happened. And so a large part was documenting all But the other part was getting everybody set in that final year in Kansas City for their hotel rooms in the brand new city of Louisville.
00:18:18
Speaker
So I made a choice as the leader. We had not charged a deposit for hotel rooms ever in our history before. And I said, no, we're not gonna do that. But the Convention of Visitors Bureau in Louisville kept saying,
00:18:31
Speaker
No, I think you really need to, you really need to. Well, in hindsight, yes, really needed to because ag teachers who can, I love them. They're my best and favorite friends in the world. However, i being one, I can say we can screw up the best laid plans of anybody out there.
00:18:49
Speaker
especially when it comes to competitions or needs that we have taking care of our students. And so what we found were teachers came in and didn't just book the rooms they wanted. ah They also booked about 10, 20 more or 50 more, really saying because they and we did a raffle for what order they got to select their rooms. And those that were the front of the line ended up taking easily, yeah doubling the number of rooms that they needed, which meant that by about two in the afternoon, we'd started 1230 all of the rooms for Louisville were gone. We had to shut down the housing system and there were still you know nearly half of the the teachers wanting to get rooms.
00:19:24
Speaker
So it was a debacle. And so we did have to go back out with the request for those that had booked rooms to put down a $50 deposit on each one of those rooms. And when they did, it cut the number in half and we had enough rooms. But in making that decision, you know had counsel from multiple places. and Teachers wouldn't want to do it.
00:19:44
Speaker
But sometimes there are things where you do have to change what you've been doing before to ensure that right, proper future for systems and organizations. Yep. And sometimes, too, you got to learn the lesson the hard way and have an oops, we got to change things. yeah I'm sorry, this did not work. Let's try something. Yes, yes, absolutely.
00:20:03
Speaker
Okay, that's ah that's an interesting example from from a different time in
Inclusivity and Support Within FFA
00:20:07
Speaker
your career. Can you share an example of a tough decision you've had to make as CEO and how you've approached it? Yeah, you know, as we continue our work to ensure that every student feels like they want belong and can engage in education.
00:20:22
Speaker
You know, society and even the world around us continues to to change in views relative to what that means and what that looks like. And for us, feel really good having the assistance of Corey Flournoy, who serves as our kind of executive in residence for that space. and over the past, well,
00:20:42
Speaker
nearly two years ago, we started kind of rethinking and reframing that to where when we landed, it says, you know, we are committed to, for every one of the students who enters into ag education, that they will find it to be welcoming, that they'll find it to be supportive, that they'll find it to be engaging, and they'll find it to be growth focused.
00:21:00
Speaker
Because as we look at the workforce communities all across this country over the next 10 to 20 years, they're going to continue to evolve. And our students need to be prepared and able to go to work and collaborate and communicate in all of those environments.
00:21:13
Speaker
And so that kind of thoughtful shifting to just ensure that our work that continues to ensure that every student feel like they belong and engage and and feel safe in that environment. I love that example, Scott.
00:21:25
Speaker
And I think it's it's so important, especially as you talk about the talent pipeline, right? And the diversity of people that we're going to need moving forward. And I know that I have such great memories of being in the blue jacket. And so my one of my biggest hopes for anyone else is that when if they get that opportunity, it's a great experience for them too, no matter where they come from.
00:21:44
Speaker
Yeah, no, Cole, one of the outcomes of that through a support of ADM in Illinois, yeah some chapters that had been very dormant for a while that weren't accessing that for whatever reason felt like FFA above the chapter level wasn't welcoming, reengaged through and providing them travel assistance grants, connecting them with chapters before they go to a state convention so they have a smaller gathering and they can interact and get to know and find yeah community with each other, and then also receiving their first blue and gold jackets for the first time, some of the students, and then putting them on and saying, all right, now I'm ready to go to state convention.
00:22:20
Speaker
There's a macro level to it, then there's this micro level that is so sweet of students finding that place to belong where they might not have thought they could before. ah Yeah, I really love that. I mean, it's simple things, right? And I think what you're talking about there, even the investment in a chapter's continuation or sustainability, i know, especially in those small communities, it can be really hard if a chapter goes away or gets less involved to get that momentum going again.
00:22:44
Speaker
But even on the individual level, right, of the, if your FFA jacket fits, or do you have the right things to go along with your official dress can make you feel like a part of something bigger.
00:22:55
Speaker
Speaking of your role as CEO, and we just talked about a tough decision you've had to make, what do you hope is the legacy of your time leading National Football?
Scott Stump's Vision for the Future of FFA
00:23:03
Speaker
Yeah, to leave it better than I found it, which it was in great shape when I found it, which means just continuing to go up from the the great work been done for me.
00:23:12
Speaker
I do think we will, and excited over the next year, we will be scaling out new leadership opportunities for middle school students because we, yeah over the past two years, grew from 100,000 to 180,000 students in that fifth through eighth section of our membership.
00:23:30
Speaker
We also will be moving quickly in the space of offering scalable virtual leadership training, knowing that we can't afford to get every FFA member to come to national convention and local communities can't afford that.
00:23:42
Speaker
So how do we take that training directly to them so that students and teachers can do that on their own time in their space with really, really high quality leadership experiences that, again, equip them with the skills of leadership, personal growth, and set them up for career success.
00:23:57
Speaker
So a lot of great things happening in the future. And what I would love to and have is kind of that legacy moment is that, yeah, we are equipped, we are nimble, we're able to adapt faster than we have in the past, that we are scalable, that we are standing alongside teachers, state leaders, equipping them again to make sure that each student that's in a classroom is getting some kind of leadership experience consistently that's growing them and delivering on that promise that we've made to employers that we're going to deliver.
00:24:25
Speaker
I love that. That sounds exciting. So I'm curious, Scott, in your interactions with students, FFA members across the country, what's the most frequently asked question that you get asked by students?
Frequently Asked Questions by Students
00:24:36
Speaker
I don't most frequently asked question by students. Yeah, so it's very common for them to say, well, first they say, all right, well, what do you do? Because nobody really knows what a CEO does. And so I do walk through and explain to them that I have this wonderful staff of 116 individuals that are some, most all here at 6060 in Indianapolis, but a few that are remote. But yeah, leading and guiding them is kind of the answer that I put out there.
00:25:01
Speaker
But they always ask, though, what should be my next step in FFA? And so that's led to some great conversations about connecting them to ah mentoring and collecting them to the right opportunity that's next step on their journey.
00:25:15
Speaker
I love that. ah So what is a question that they don't ask you, but you wish they did? Oh, how do I become an ag teacher? So there you go. We we are definitely always still in a shortage of agriculture educators. So anyone that wants to wish me asked me that question, I can definitely guide them down that path.
00:25:33
Speaker
I love that. You want to make a difference, become an ag teacher. Okay, Scott, just looking ahead to the future as we wrap up, when you look at the next generation of leaders coming from FFA, what gives you the most hope for the future of agriculture?
00:25:45
Speaker
You know, we did a wonderful study with the help of BASF a couple of years ago and asking our most recent graduates, so those that were American degree recipients, what what they were looking for in the future of work.
00:25:57
Speaker
And we talked about earlier that this next generation are ones looking for problems to solve. They're also looking for values alignment with the places they work. And it was one of the top priorities for them.
00:26:09
Speaker
And I've told employers since that study came out that, hey, watch out. You know, this this generation are going to be interviewing you more than you're going to be interviewing them. And I just think that will have some interesting implications for workplaces across this country and the world for decades to come.
00:26:26
Speaker
Okay, so follow up question. If you were to give one piece of advice to agriculture employers, what would it be? Yeah, become very clear in in what your values are and then ah be able to share those, articulate those to students and sell them to students that, hey, this is this is why we exist as a company.
00:26:44
Speaker
Come be a part of our ah solution that we're providing for the world.
Promoting Agriculture as a Meaningful Career
00:26:48
Speaker
Love that. And I think there's a lot of good ones in agriculture to go to, right? It's ah it's a very noble profession, very, I'll be honest, fun profession.
00:26:56
Speaker
So love that. I think we are going to move into what we call our speed mentoring or rapid fire segment of the podcast. So try to answer these questions just as quick as you can, like one sentence, 30 seconds, that kind of thing.
00:27:09
Speaker
What is your definition of a good leader? Influence. And that comes from John Maxwell, Booker read many years ago. What's the best leadership advice you've ever received? Yeah. So i'm going to go to, and Dad actually passed this along.
00:27:21
Speaker
FFA used to, I'm sorry, I'm going to be on the one sentence, but FFA used to have a wonderful relationship with Purina that would yeah provide leadership materials out to local chapters. And William Danforth was tremendous asset in that, who was the president and founder. But the one bit of advice was be your own self at your best all the time.
00:27:39
Speaker
Hard to do. Easy to say. Hard to do. Yeah. Good aspiration to have, though. What is one leadership habit or routine that you swear by? Humility. We talked about that one earlier. That's the one that I try very hard to live out on a daily basis.
00:27:53
Speaker
What is a book, podcast, or resource that every leader should check out? Developing the leader within you. and Again, that's a John Maxwell, and that's where he defines leadership as influence and talks about levels of leadership.
00:28:04
Speaker
Love that. I'm also a Maxwell fan. What is a leadership myth that needs to be busted? Yeah, so this one goes back again to somewhat a Maxwell ah root, but leadership does not come from title or office.
00:28:17
Speaker
Leadership comes and can be any level in an organization and can be between any two individuals and can be reciprocated between individuals. It is all about influence and it's how we connect with those around us to make the world a better place. so Love it.
00:28:34
Speaker
If you could give every young professional one piece of advice, what would it be? You're not done growing. It's the same advice that I give to every FFA member at every state convention I've been to. This is my single singular message.
00:28:46
Speaker
Seek out and say yes to opportunities to grow. And those would be areas where you might not feel comfortable, but they will cause you to grow and experience new things. And as you and I had with state office, maybe the defining factor in what your path is.
00:29:01
Speaker
Awesome. Love it. Okay, so at AFA, we love hot
Leadership Effectiveness and Future Generations
00:29:04
Speaker
takes. So going to ask you for an unconventional opinion, Scott, what is an bold opinion about leadership or the future of agriculture that you have? So maybe something that you believe about leadership that other people might disagree with?
00:29:18
Speaker
And as I was going through these earlier, this was one that in my little time of preparing, I did not get an answer set down for. And it is a big one out there. And I don't want to let you down with a poor answer.
00:29:29
Speaker
Well, and let's let's go this way. Leadership is seasonal. I'm going to start it that way, that you can have an absolutely phenomenal leader in a place or a situation or an organization that even as good of the leader as they are may not be a fit or a right spot for that point in time.
00:29:48
Speaker
Same time, you could have an organization that is just blowing it out the doors, but again, not have the right leader in the mix. And so this notion of as your listeners that are ah young and up and coming professionals, look for those places where you are the right leader at the right time.
00:30:09
Speaker
because your skill set is unique if you truly are being your own self at your best all the time. And you're going to bring your lens of leadership to that situation. And when that matches up to the right environment and timing for that association, organization, company, whatever it might be, product line, that's when magic's gonna happen.
00:30:28
Speaker
I love that, Scott. I think that also just gives people permission for that. There is if leadership is seasonal, then there can be different seasons of our careers in different times and places doing different roles, whether you're out front leading or leading behind the scenes. So great, great hot take.
00:30:49
Speaker
so Thank you. Well, and as a part of that, just to give you more context, to where that comes from is that i yeah I worked for National FFA for a decade. My wife and I were living here in Indianapolis. had two kids and the third one on the way.
00:31:01
Speaker
And yeah, I thought I was going to end my career with National FFA. So not just 10 years, i was just going to stay all the way through. ah The opportunity came to be a state leader in Colorado where my wife's from. And so that's when we stepped away and made the decision to relocate to Colorado.
00:31:17
Speaker
I thought I would never come back. But in reality, it was only by going on that journey that I could come back and have the right skill set that I didn't know I needed it at the time because having been a state leader, having worked for a private company that did virtual and and distance learning incredibly innovative educational resources, then going to the federal government and seeing the macro view of how do you change systems over millions upon millions of learners, those were all pivotal experiences that set me up for now.
00:31:48
Speaker
So at that time, yeah different seasons of leadership. Oh, I love that so much. Okay, Scott. So as we wrap up, ah we talked about a lot of great things today. I'm so glad to to have you on the podcast.
00:32:01
Speaker
If listeners take just one thing away from this conversation today, what do you hope it is? We're in good hands with the next generation. That is great news to hear for the future of agriculture. So at AFA, we're all about building bridges.
00:32:12
Speaker
Where can people connect with you personally? And where do you want them to go to learn more about what National FFA is up to these days? so Absolutely. So www.ffa.org is the primary central good repository for that. And then, yes, also available on LinkedIn. And we'd love to connect with individuals that would love to hear more.
00:32:33
Speaker
Well, thank you so much, Scott, for your time today. I really enjoyed the conversation and lessons and really appreciate you joining us on the Cultivating Leaders podcast. Wonderful. Thank you, Nicole. Thanks for listening to the Cultivating Leaders podcast brought to you by Agriculture Future of America.
00:32:48
Speaker
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