Machinery Pete, Greg Peterson, has become a household name on farms throughout the U.S.  His passion for tractors and auctions coupled with his vision of a resource for farmers that want to buy and sell used tractors have led him to great heights in agriculture.  He was first on the show back in 2015, and I am running his episode again today to tie in with tomorrow’s Ag Business Episode in which I will be profiling an up and coming agricultural podcaster who I have no doubt will rise to great heights as well.

The original show notes are below:

SHOW NOTES

KEY IDEAS:

ADVICE FROM GREG PETERSON:

THINK LONG TERM: Greg wants you to imagine what your business will look like 10 years from now.  Do not expect instant success.  Know that the vision you have of your life is worth waiting for.  Put in the necessary time, the 10,000 hours.

TRUST YOUR GUT: Greg talked a lot about having a gut feeling and going with it.  He is humble, but he has great intuition.  Intuition is simply “knowing without knowing why.”  That is your gut feeling.  Trust your intuition.  It is built into your DNA for a reason.

BECOME A GOOD LISTENER: What Greg loves about his interaction with his audience is having a “conversation.”  Without listening, this conversation would only go in one direction.  Greg believes that he picks up significantly more by listening than he does when he is talking.

BEST BUSINESS ADVICE THAT GREG PETERSON HAS RECEIVED:

LOOK SIDE TO SIDE: Greg’s father gave him this piece of advice.  “Keep your eyes open and look side to side.”  This reminded me so much of my previous career in law enforcement.  I’ve actually received this exact advice, but in a different context.  When we were trained to drive fast, with lights and sirens on, we were told that under that stress we would develop tunnel vision.  So, we were trained to purposely turn our head from side to side when driving under those conditions because our peripheral vision would be diminished and you did not want to miss a car off to your side, etc.

Greg was warned against developing tunnel vision.  His father was wise enough to make sure that he did not get so focused on one particular thing that he would miss other opportunities.  Make sure that you keep your head on a swivel too.

PERSONAL HABIT THAT ADS TO GREG PETERSON’S SUCCESS:

ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE: Greg describes himself as being thankful.  He has gratitude.  He understands that what he has been able to do has been given to him, and he does not take that for granted.

THE BUSINESS SECTION: Greg reads the business section of the newspaper or a business website every day.  Opportunities arise all the time, and reading about what is going on in business can make that metaphorical light bulb click on.  So, expose yourself to those in business if that is the direction you want to go.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION:

Greg recommends Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell.  He really is a believer that success comes through repetitive practice, pursuing your idea and getting your “10,000 hours” in.  You will learn all about the 10,000 hours in this book.

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