by JW Cox, NJHA board director

“Every time you say yes to something you say no to something else.”- Kelly Barnes

The last weekend in March I had the privilege of saying yes to traveling to Desdemona, Texas, to meet with the National Junior Hereford Association (NJHA) Board. Upon arrival we had a great time catching up before getting to work on our plans for the Junior National Hereford Expo (JNHE) and Faces of Leadership. The board and I are very excited going into this summer and are looking forward to the Hereford Spectacular, Faces of Leadership and the ability to see fellow juniors who we haven’t had the chance to see in many months.

Over the weekend we visited with Kelly Barnes, a leadership trainer and keynote speaker, who helped develop us as leaders. After our training session I was left with one quote in particular, “Every time you say yes to something you say no to something else.”

This really hit home for me since I am the type of person that is always lending a helping hand to anyone who asks. I sometimes struggle with over-extending myself, and because of this, I was able to put the quote into perspective and relate it to my own life. Over the past few years, I have been working on a Hereford farm in another state, while also trying to expand my own family farm in my hometown. This has been a challenge and led to many sacrifices where I would say yes to something, only to say no to something else. However, this has allowed me to make more connections and grow as a member of the Hereford association. Going forward, I believe it is important to realize that each additional commitment will come with different opportunities, but will also bring sacrifices to other parts of my life, because there are simply not enough hours in the day to take every opportunity we are presented. I am thankful for the opportunity I had to visit with my fellow board members and further develop my leadership skills and I would like to give a special thanks to Gary and Kathy Buchholz for their hospitality at GKB Cattle.