The Law of the Farm

Knowledge in the area of financial planning, often resembles a mosaic of facts, principles and applications developed by many people over time. Each expert builds upon and enhances the ideas of others in that field. In the same way, the ideas and principles of self-help authors have often overlapped and intersected in remarkable ways. One recent connection was observed between Steven Covey's "Law of the Farm" and the late Earl Nightingale's concept of considering each day as the basic "building block" of a successful life.

The concept behind the Law of the Farm is simple: As in farming, success in life comes from regular disciplined, daily effort. A farmer cannot expect to reap a bumper crop by being lazy for three months and then "cramming" to catch up in late August. He must of course begin in early spring by tilling and cultivating his land fertilizing and then carefully planting and tending to his crop. Then through the summer months he must nurture it by additional fertilization, weeding and watering. Only then can he expect to have a bountiful harvest come the fall.

The basic unit of success

Covey's Law of the Farm principle is strikingly similar to the concept presented by the late Earl Nightingale in one of his audiotapes. In Nightingale's mind, success is built upon the most basic building block of time … the day. Success comes not from sudden, sporadic bursts of activity but through the cumulative effect of disciplined, daily effort. Therefore, the greatest successes in life are built slowly and deliberately through focused, consistent, high-quality efforts on a daily basis.

Looking back upon a successful life, Nightingale asserted, a person would usually discover that no one individual day was responsible for the success achieved. Rather, it was the successful succession of days, lived as best as one can, one day at a time that was responsible for his or her ultimate achievements.

There are no shortcuts

Today, it seems like many people want instant wealth and success. They want the rewards of life, but don't really want to put forth the effort and creativity it actually takes to become successful. The metaphor of "cramming" Covey referred to could be compared today to those people who are constantly on the lookout for "get rich quick" schemes; shortcuts to material success which are usually too good to be true, or which may involve some moral or ethical compromises.

If these people only knew about the Law of the Farm, they would realize that they can only reap what they sow. Therefore if one wants to increase their harvest, it follows that one should increase the quality and consistency of their efforts in tending to the various garden plots that make up their lives.

Conclusion

In short, financial success comes not from finding an easy shortcut or by taking advantage of one's fellow man, but from daily, disciplined, focused effort, directed tirelessly toward a desirable goal.

Financial planning and investment management are the garden plots that we at Crawford, Graham & Associates endeavor to help you grow. Just like the apple trees in our banner all things experience seasons of growth. By putting the Law of the Farm to work for you and adjusting for the seasons we feel that we can help you move closer to your financial goals and objectives. And at the end of the day isn’t that the harvest we all hope to reap?