Hello everyone and welcome to the Within Range Coaching Podcast.
I'm Ranger, a certified holistic success coach, and in this podcast I break down the
journey entrepreneurs face as they start their organizations, overcome roadblocks in their
way and create an impact that lasts.
We talk with entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders and purpose-driven community members just
like you.
Together, we learn how to grow our impact and develop ourselves as the people behind
the mission.
My intention is to help more people, help more people.
And remember, if you're curious about expanding your impact, growing a community or defining
your mission, vision or values, we can chat off the record.
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If you're interested in helping us highlight individuals doing great work in the world
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I know you're just as eager to get started as I am, so let's jump right in.
Good morning, good afternoon and good evening everybody and welcome to another episode of
the Within Range Coaching Podcast.
And we are still continuing on our series of my walk across America journey.
And today we're not talking with someone that I've met along the way.
I mean, kind of sort of, but not really.
We are doing another nonprofit partner spotlight.
We've talked with bigger than the trail in the past.
We've talked with the Hospice Promise Foundation and we've actually already kind of sort of
talked it up to this organization.
But what's unique about this organization, you know, the Future Farmers of America, is
there's two major aspects to it.
There's kind of that adult adult side where it's the faculty, the staff, and then there's
also the side of leadership for the younger folks, the FFA members.
On the national level, it's typically more so based in the recent high school graduates
rather than the high school students like we've kind of chatted about before.
But today we have one of those very, very special recent high school-ish slash college
student people right now.
She's nodding so I got that part right.
We are joined by the 2023 to 2024 National Future Farmers of America president, Amara
Jackson.
Amara, how are you doing today?
Hey, I'm good.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm so excited to be here and to be able to spend our time together and celebrating and
highlighting your journey across America and the way that it's continuing to impact agriculture
and agro-fa.
We're very grateful for your support and we look forward to cheering you on on your journey.
Yeah, I appreciate it.
I'm glad that I finally got to sit down.
I always, it sounds so silly.
Maybe it's not silly.
I don't know.
Whenever I talk to like a state or national officer, I always feel like I'm talking to
a celebrity.
It's like the conditioning that we kind of have in, you know, state conference or at
the chapter level.
It's like, oh my God, like we're going to get visited by a state officer.
How cool is that?
You know?
So this is like tickling that little part of my high school brain that's like, ooh,
look, look where I am now.
Well, thank you.
Something I have to tell students when I'm meeting them on the road, because we very
often they're like, oh my gosh, it's an officer.
Oh my gosh, like who are you?
Or like, why are you here?
I always just tell them like, well, my name's Amara and I'm a human too.
Like I'm, I still get nervous.
I still get excited.
I still get all the things.
And so even like this podcast, I'm just really excited to be here with you.
So yeah, I love that.
No and I hear you.
I think it's so, it's so interesting because when I, my second day of my walk, there was
a woman that walked up to me and she kind of acted like she was starstruck.
Like she was saying like, I saw you on TikTok.
I saw you on the news.
Like, oh my God, you're real.
And I was like, whoa, I'm just, I'm just an overweight white dude.
That's that's doing that.
That's like low key homeless and unemployed right now.
Like, whoa, I'm just walking here, you know?
So it's always kind of funny to see different people's reactions or how people kind of perceive,
I guess, who you are.
And I want to say like how important you are.
You know what I mean though?
It's like, it's such a weird.
I know exactly what you're saying because you're right.
Theoretically, I'm a college dropout student who doesn't have a job or, you know, just
travels because I can, I guess.
Like, yeah, it's so funny that perception and like the power that like public recognition
or like that title can can use.
And so I was raised thankfully by a mom who always taught me the power of humility.
And so I have really had to lean into that this year and be like, okay, well, yes, I
do have, I might have this title on my chest, but like it's my actions that truly make that
biggest impact.
And, and I would say the same for you too, like your ability to power through.
I mean, I can only imagine the mental toughness that you have from all the walking on those
miles.
That's, that's where the power truly lays.
Yeah, no, I agree.
I think it's, it's so interesting because I mean, anybody can, okay, I want to say anybody
can do what we do.
I feel like anybody could, you know, quit their job, drop it, you know, go and walk
across the country.
I mean, plenty of people have done it with very different resources than I have less
or more or whatever, but you're right.
Like when you say it's more about the character, like, what do you mean when you say that?
Like what are those character traits that you're referring to?
Yeah.
So when I think about character traits, like a leader or obviously any person should have
humility, like I had mentioned, really comes to mind.
I have always believed that you don't know what you don't know until you realize you
don't know it.
And same thing goes, you don't realize what you know until you realize that you know it.
And so honestly, being humble and willing to ask those questions, admit that you don't
know what's going on can really serve you in a capacity where people will then respect
you for being willing to admit that you're not in the know of everything or that you're
not necessarily the one that has all the answers.
And so that's something that I really value.
I also just really value the ability to remain grounded and a good listener and someone who
isn't, who's willing to like be an observer and just like take in what's going on around
them.
It can be really overwhelming sometimes if you always feel like you have to be at the
front of the line or you always feel like you have to be making that first comment or
taking that first step.
But there's I feel like great power in being willing to slow down and to look around you,
observe, like remain grounded.
I feel like you have such better control of yourself and your actions when you do that.
Whereas if you always feel like you're running that race, like you're going to eventually
lose control and your feet are going to go faster than your body and then you're going
to crash and burn.
And so I feel like those traits of just, you know, being able to remain humble and grounded
and an observant are just so important when it comes to leadership, especially when people
around you are like, oh my gosh, you're an X and X person or oh my goodness, like who
are you, what are you doing now?
Where are you traveling?
Like to them it's very fresh and new.
And to me, like, yeah, this is the life I live and this is how I have to remain consistent
is through these traits.
Yeah.
And there's a few things there that I kind of want to highlight.
It sounds like a lot of it, a lot of that really resonates with me because as a professional
coach, a lot of what I do is listen and reflect and be extremely present with people.
I mean, at my little closet desk at home, every time I was on coaching calls, I always
had the coaching state in front of me and it was to be present and to be curious.
Because kind of like you're saying, if you start making assumptions or you start acting
like you know everything, who is that really serving?
Like it's not serving yourself.
It's not serving the person in front of you.
It's really truly taking what people are saying and finding what's deeper, what's underneath
that, seeing what's really going on.
Because that's really when you learn the most is when you, I don't know, just pay attention.
Yeah.
This year, like as I've traveled about almost 5000 miles just in 2024, it's all across the
country and I've realized that like it can be so easy to have hundreds of people around
you and to not know a single person.
But it also can be really easy to have hundreds of people around you and have made a bunch
of connections and a bunch of friends.
And it's like that intentional decision in your mind of like, okay, well, I sit here
and we'll listen and take in and observe what's going on around here.
Or will I like maybe stick to my own thoughts, stick to maybe my phone or stick to like what's
going on internally inside me.
And I just have really been pondering like as a National Officer, like building connections
with people, like how can I make sure that the person that is standing right in front
of me is feeling seen, is feeling valued and is feeling appreciated?
Because I've realized that so many of us lack that genuine human connection.
And I think that's why so many people feel lonely is because they don't know who they
can rely on.
They don't know who they can call to.
And they just they'll be in a room full of so many people, but not even they'll feel
alone.
And so like there's so much importance and in being able to build that human connection
and make people feel like they're part of that string, like they're a part of something
bigger than themselves.
Because then then maybe feel less alone.
And we feel like we can maybe be a part of something good too.
And then my hope is that that trickle would continue.
Yeah, kind of like if I can help this person feel seen, maybe they can help someone else
and then help someone else.
And I guess that's really a big part of my is my I don't know, my intention with the
podcast overall is to help more people help more people.
So it's always like that's always at the forefront of my mind is like, OK, I can help this person,
but is there any way that I can serve them beyond that beyond just that initial hand
or assistance or whatever?
And I kind of want to circle back to something you just said a second ago, where you mentioned
that genuine human connection, that that's something that people are lacking.
I see that almost every single day with my walk.
It's not every day that this happens, but I would probably say like roughly once a week
or so when somebody pulls over to talk to me, people have told me the craziest things
on the side of a highway.
And I think I feel like crazy maybe may not be the right word, but it's just so I guess
like personal and deep, whether it's struggles with mental illness or mental health, relationships
or this or that.
It's like when you're really able to be present and curious with them and like show that genuine
care for a stranger, like people just like that's what people really need.
And I think that's something that people.
Yeah, people can feel it.
And I think that's why like in your instance, they just like open up because they're like,
oh my gosh, like someone finally sees me or finally understands like that.
That happens a lot with students on my end.
It's like they'll like finally feel valued for something.
And then they're like, oh, and by the way, like this is something that like happened
and I'm like, oh, OK, like I'm here to support you.
But yeah, wow.
That wow.
I'm sure like that happens.
And then like you continue walking and like, do you just like think about it or like what
does that look like for you?
Oh, Jesus, you're flipping the script on this one.
I think it's so interesting.
I mean, usually after something like that happens, I call one of my friends and I'm
like, dude, this, you know, they kind of like talk me through it almost like nothing, nothing
to the point that I've been extremely concerned for their safety has happened.
But I have given out some bigger than the trail cards because they have like their little,
I guess, their QR code for the free therapy and mental health support.
So I'm very thankful that I had those on hand to kind of pass out to them.
But typically it's one of those things.
It's very much like the I think I talked to about this.
Somebody recently about the starfish story.
Have you heard of that?
I haven't.
OK, so basically it's there is, I guess, the person, whoever it is on the beach doesn't
matter.
She's on the beach and she's like dancing around and she's picking up starfish and throwing
them back in the ocean.
The beach is just covered in starfish and an old man walks up and says, what are you
doing?
And she's like, oh, I'm saving the starfish.
And she picks another one up and throws it into the ocean.
And he goes, well, there's so many of them.
Like, what difference does it make?
Like you're just one person.
Like you're not going to save them all.
And she picks up another one and says, well, it makes a difference to this one and throws
it back in the ocean.
And then the ocean is gone.
Yeah, I'll send you I'll I'll I'll put in the show notes or something to.
But no, I mean, I heard that I heard like five or six years ago and I was like, oh,
my God, I love it.
And that's very much what it is.
Right.
Is you can't help everybody.
You can't help anybody 100 percent, but maybe just that one percent to get them over the
edge to help themselves to take action.
And I guess in that case, usually the barrier to entry for therapy and stuff is the cost.
So I'm kind of like, OK, maybe this conversation, maybe this resource, maybe this will be what
kind of helps them move forward.
So I guess at the end of the day, it's like, OK, I did everything I could in that 10 minute
conversation on the side of the highway.
So you kind of have to let go and like, you know, let the universe or whatever kind of
take hold from there.
So that's kind of how I deal with that and kind of placate it in my mind.
That's awesome.
That's yeah.
I'm just super curious.
That's awesome.
Hey, listeners, we're taking a quick break to give a special shout out to our friends
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Remember, excellence starts with the best genetics and D.K. Dorpers delivers just that.
Now let's get back to the show.
We got carried away right away and I didn't even ask you what your intention is for today's
episode.
It sounds like based on the conversation we had off the record that we're still on track,
but just for our listeners, what would you say is your intention for the rest of our
time together?
Yeah, looking forward to chatting with you about obviously your walk, but your walk is
having a huge impact on the national FFA organization.
So I'm wanting to chat a little bit about that.
For your listeners if they don't know, his walk is impacting our students.
In our organization we have almost one million FFA members all across the country and the
U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
And something about FFA is our students engage in work-based learning, also known as supervised
agriculture experiences.
And sometimes when students are trying to begin this work-based learning project, there
can be a financial barrier.
And so with his walk, with his commitment, he is helping our students receive SAE grants,
which essentially provides students with financial support to create a project.
It could be anything from research to having a livestock animal to show up there to starting
a business themselves.
And so these students who are our future leaders of tomorrow are receiving such great support
from the good work that he's doing here.
So looking forward to highlighting that and talking a little bit about our students and
sharing their stories and the experiences that they're receiving by being an FFA member.
Perfect.
Yeah, so mostly talking about the good work that I'm doing.
I love it.
And no, so it's true.
Yeah.
And I'd love to hear some stories from you about the SAE grants and just to kind of share
why I'm picking FFA.
I mean, I mean, well, you know, I had my FFA ring right here, like my class ring, and like
I was in it all four years.
Super impactful for me.
Super cute, super wholesome, right?
But really the reason that I picked the SAE grants in particular is because I had a few
friends in high school or people that I met from other chapters or even just as an alumni
hearing stories that there's kids that definitely should have gone and gotten their state degrees
or their American degrees, and they just couldn't afford to get started.
And you know, I came from a good place where my family was able to support me.
They were able to give me my first few animals, get help me with feed, help me with this or
that.
But there's other people that didn't really have that opportunity.
And I don't know, I feel like FFA was extremely influential for me and them still.
But I feel like it would have helped them get the recognition that I thought that they
really deserve for the work that they were putting in.
And so if you kind of want to take it away and share a couple stories of kiddos that
have received that grants and where they've gone, I think that that would be extremely
impactful and useful.
For sure.
So one story that I love to share, just because I find it so unique and so niche, is there
was a student who grew up raising, showing livestock, sheep in particular, and she loved
that.
But she saw a need within her community and within her state that there wasn't a good
practice to pregnancy check the female sheep, or also known as ewes, on people's farms.
And so within her community, she production was something that a lot of families did.
And so she through an SAE grant she had applied, received financial support, she now can ultrasound
and pregnancy check these new lambs.
And so she travels all across the state, checking for pregnancy checks within these animals,
she has all the equipment needed, the safety standards, the hygiene, like all of it, she
was able to purchase and basically get everything that she needed because of the financial support
from the SAE grant.
And the equipment to do an ultrasound, I like, I like, I'll sit here and think like, my
gosh, that has to be so expensive.
So like, I'm so thankful that she was able to receive that.
And then she was able to continue on with that.
She got her American FFA degree.
And now she's working in the agriculture industry and still continuing to support our community
in what might seem like a niche way, but to those agriculturalists is so important for
the livelihood of their production.
And so it's so fascinating to see how a 15 year old girl could someday be 21 now and
still continuing on just because of that lump of money that she received as an FFA member.
It's incredible.
And there's stories like that all across the country.
I know of other students who didn't grow up in rural America, but were in urban America
and received that funding to begin research projects in hospital labs.
That research project can be anything from testing different pesticides and herbicides
and different plants to anything from working with livestock and analyzing maybe the way
that a lot of animals move or their health or anything.
It can be in a greenhouse.
It's incredible to see the way that we're engaging students both in urban areas and
rural areas through the SAE grants.
And that's providing them with, like you said, the recognition, the ability to apply for
those awards or pursue towards those different degrees and those levels within FFA simply
because they got started with $1,000 or $1,500.
You know, whatever that looks like, that can set a student off on a trajectory that they
might not have had the possibility to have.
I also love hearing stories from students where it's like, man, prior to FFA, I had
no idea what agriculture was.
I didn't think about where my food came from.
I didn't think about the clothing that I was wearing.
But then I joined FFA and I got hands on with it through an SAE, through that work-based
learning.
And now, like, I want to study agriculture or I want to go into a career in agriculture.
It's so fascinating where a year prior, they were a completely different person.
And now from being a year enrolled in agriculture science, that they have completely switched
their trajectory and truly found a passion that encourages them to come to school.
They built a community that allows them to feel supported and they're gaining skills
that will carry them far beyond their time in their high school.
And so to me, it's just really inspiring to see how someone who is 14 years old, unsure
of what they want to do, can someday graduate high school at 18 and feel so passionate about
an industry that they want to serve.
Yeah, I love that.
I don't know.
I feel like that is such an important lesson also, right?
I got my degree in economics, so that's kind of how I see everything, right?
So just like the supply and demand, right?
So I think it's so interesting that her, that she at 14, 15 was able to see that need and
I don't know, just really know that she, a 14, 15 year old in a state with adults that
could have done something about it way sooner, I'm sure, but was able to really take that
leap and get that support and backing of the FFA.
And let me know what you think about this statement.
But one of the greatest things that I have always appreciated about FFA is that it's
an extremely safe place to fail.
That even if you, I don't know, you go out, you try and it just all blows up in your face.
Now what?
It's not like you're, I don't know, like on the streets, right?
Like she could have done that.
It could have gone haywire, but she still would have been able to learn something from
it.
It's useful in some way, but knowing that the worst case scenario isn't, I don't know,
being homeless and unemployed in the middle of the US somewhere, I guess, I don't know,
that she can take that risk and take that backing.
So like, what have you seen in terms of, I don't know, like that risk mitigation of taking
a chance with FFA for students?
Like how have you seen that come into play?
Yeah.
I actually have to think of just yesterday here.
I'm currently in Alabama.
I was here for their state FFA convention and each year at a state convention, they
will elect a new set of state FFA officers.
So they'll serve across their state, travel, meet with their students.
And so anyway, during the final session, that new team is always elected.
And usually that group of students has spent the whole week interviewing, going through
multiple rounds, trying to be the next state FFA officer.
And so this leads us to yesterday morning, 12 girls were running to be selected.
Six people get selected to serve, now they're not facing associations.
So they knew that it was a 50-50 percent chance of whether they got elected.
And they knew that when they left that holding room that six people were going to return
and six people were going to leave.
And so it was fascinating staying there and talking with them.
And they recognize that, you know, like there's a time and place for everybody.
And because of FFA, they could go through this interview process knowing that at the
end, whether they're selected or not, that this is not the end of their journey.
They know that these interviews have set them up for a job interview or have prepared them
to hold an educated conversation with somebody who might be 20, 30 years older than them.
Like, this is just one way that these students went through this whole process, maybe didn't
hear their name called, but can walk away knowing they still have support of their teachers,
their families, their mentors, all guiding them on whatever the next journey is in their
life.
And it's like that for students at any level of an FFA.
I see all the time when students are competing for contests, maybe they've prepared a speech
or they're about to go to day ag issues, whatever that is, there's always a crowd of people
following in behind them into that competition room because they're cheering them on.
They're proud of them.
Maybe they've coached them.
They believe in them.
And that's what I truly love about FFA is people believe in people.
And I've realized that our student membership would not be growing as fast and as large
as it is if we didn't have that culture of belonging and that culture of support.
Students do feel like it's an okay place to fail and they do feel like it's a good place
to succeed.
And they see both sides of it and they benefit from both sides of it.
And so I would agree 100% that FFA is a very safe place to fail.
I myself have had my own failures with an FFA and it honestly propelled me to keep going.
It encouraged me that I was like, you know what, like when I wake up tomorrow, I can
try again.
And I know that's because the blue corduroy jacket is a home and it represents more than
just myself.
And I truly believe that our over 900,000 FFA numbers also need to feel that way too.
And I truly believe that people join people, people don't just join organizations.
Our organization is conducted of hundreds and hundreds of wonderful, wonderful people.
Now I agree.
And there was something that I learned.
So I ran a herpetological society, lizard snakes, things like that for a few years and
registered 501c3 president, no big deal.
But that was something that I talked to a couple of nonprofit consultants and coaches
and they were always saying like, stop trying to sell a membership.
Explain to people, like don't tell them the perks.
Don't tell them the benefits.
Nobody cares that it's only $5 a month and you get 10% off.
Like nobody cares.
Frame it in the way of people like us do things like this.
Bring them into a community.
People don't join organizations, they join people.
And I think that that is like a huge lesson for a lot of like inspiring nonprofit leaders
or even entrepreneurs to really focus in on is the people, not the product, not the process.
Nobody really cares.
They care about the solution.
They care about how it impacts them and the community that they're going to join there.
So I love that you see that and we're able to speak to that and be the expert on it right
now because I think that's something that is important.
Oh, thank you.
Yeah.
And FFA made me laugh when you mentioned like, oh, nobody cares to hit a $5.
Something that FFA is actually working on right now is traditionally our students have
had to pay dues to be an FFA member.
And we recognize over the last several years that that creates a financial barrier for
students.
Some students are not able to physically walk up to their teacher and say, here's my $10
or here's my $7 or whatever the due might be for that time being for that chapter.
And so the National FFA organization is working to become what we call 100% affiliated where
the student would no longer pay that first student due.
Instead, it's going to be a flat rate chapter fee.
And so it lifts that barrier off of the student in that community.
That way they no longer have to worry about asking their parent or their guardian for
that money or maybe giving that money themselves.
Instead, the chapter can support the student in that way.
And so every student sitting in that classroom is considered an FFA member, which then in
our terms allows them to compete in all the contests or attend the events that they'd
like or connect with the people within FFA because that due is essentially paid for them.
And so it's really exciting that to me it shows that FFA wants to continue to flourish
at people building and to allow space for those students that although financially they might
not be able to support themselves, kind of like the SAE grant, we still value them and
we still want them a part of our organization.
And there's still a place for them.
Hey, everyone, just a quick message.
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Thank you so much.
And now back to the show.
I think it's a little bit of a stretch for me to ask this next question, but that really
does kind of start bleeding into, I guess, the representation of FFA members.
Yeah.
I know that you've mentioned, you know, there's a what is it like 60 40 rule to urban or something?
Well, I'll let you say the numbers, I guess.
Let's do that first.
And then I'll ask the other question I wanted to ask you because I'm curious on your thoughts.
But what does that kind of look like?
So in terms of the membership, I've gotten this question a few times.
I've gotten people look at me kind of cock eyed and they're like future farmers of America.
Why not like future business leaders of America?
Why not Boy Scouts?
Why not Girl Scouts?
And I'm like, well, I was never an FBLA.
I wasn't in Boy Scouts.
I wasn't in Girl Scouts.
So I'm like, it feels disingenuous to, I don't know, support an organization for the walk
that I'm not directly a part of.
It feels kind of like fanfare almost to me.
But, you know, I've always tried to explain, you know, it's yes, it's cows, plows and whatever.
But like you kind of mentioned earlier, there's a sales aspect, there's science, there's research,
there's so many other aspects of the FFA.
I guess in terms of the demographics that you've seen, like what does that kind of look
like to you?
Yeah.
So yeah, so we do know 60% of our students come from rural America.
The other 40% come from urban and suburban areas.
And that number continues to tick.
We watch words that even 50-50.
And so our students, our students in urban areas are continuing to engage more and more.
They're curious about where their food comes from.
They're curious about the cotton that's in their clothing.
But also our students in rural America, we recognize that as an economy, there's not
as many young students coming from traditional quote unquote perfection agriculture.
And so we need representation both in rural and urban areas because they're consumers
of agriculture products just like anybody else's.
And so although FFA might have previously been known as Future Farmers of America, FFA
students are becoming lawyers, becoming teachers, they're becoming research specialists, they're
becoming your next high school principal, they're becoming podcasters, they're becoming
business owners, they're becoming everything and anything.
And I think that's the key with FFA that sometimes people miss is like you mentioned, like it
might sound like they're all farmers or like all of our students are only going to return
to agriculture.
But our hope is that even if our student doesn't return to agriculture, it's that they become
an educated consumer.
That when they walk into that grocery store, that they're aware of what it means to read
a label on GMO which is not in GMO.
Or that they understand what it means when there's milk and it says not antibiotic.
For any of those components that relate to the agriculture industry, they're educated
on.
And so education can then trickle down someday if they build a family and have children,
they can educate their children on it.
And so it's a ripple effect that the FFA organization has.
And it's not just for students who are in rural production agriculture.
Yes, it was started by 33 farm boys who saw value in rural America.
That is where our heritage links.
But we have continued to grow and understand that we need those educated consumers who
can connect with agriculture because if you eat three times a day and you're wearing clothes
right now, you are connected to agriculture.
And you would be naked, hungry and afraid if it wasn't for agriculture.
And I think sometimes we forget that.
But our students don't because they are hands deep, they are engaged, they're very aware.
And it doesn't matter whether they live down a main street in an urban city or if they
live on a dirt road in the middle of a cornfield.
They value that.
And that's what's so powerful about our student demographic.
Yeah, and that's I guess on the on the business side of it too, right, is what I've always
heard is niche down, find a niche, get specific on the problem, the people, the community,
whatever you solve.
And just, you know, from my experience in FFA and seeing where the organization is going,
that's exactly what is happening is start off very niche, you know, farmers, this and
that, you know, livestock, farming, plants, etc.
And now it very much is starting to broaden out because you we were able to get such a
on it like deeply rooted in the community in these areas to say, okay, this is specifically
the people that we serve.
Great.
We've gotten this down pretty damn good.
Now we serve more people.
How can we broaden?
It's what is it?
Go deep and then go wide?
Because if you try to go wide too fast, then it's like, well, what are you really trying
to even do here?
And it's it's overwhelming.
It's confusing.
But now that you're so deeply rooted, you can expand out and help all these different
people.
And just like what you were saying, one of the people that comes to mind that was super
involved in my chapter, she she was never going to be an act like she wasn't going to
be a farmer.
She that wasn't what she wanted.
But just watching her Facebook posts over the years from when she graduated, I think
she was able to go from like front desk lady at a hotel to general manager in just a few
years, which I don't know anything about the whole.
Well, my fiance works for a property, but not the type that she works at.
So I was like, I feel like there has to be some kind of connection on, you know, those
skills that she learned that were so specific to farming and FFA and agriculture that she
was able to take and broaden out.
And I think that's I know that's the most important thing for me is taking skills from
anywhere and applying it elsewhere.
I think that's a skill in and of itself.
Yeah, and FFA does such a good job at preparing our students to think about life outside of
the classroom.
At the end of our vision statement, it says, when your leadership personal growth and career
success.
And so we really value that students who are in the classroom as they're engaging with
that work based learning, as they're developing their leadership skills, that they're thinking
in terms of like, OK, how will this serve me when I'm no longer sitting in this classroom?
What jobs or what careers are there available for me?
Because something that I was raised in agriculture and I didn't realize until I took my agriscience
education class and I was an FFA member that there was so many careers in agriculture far
beyond farming.
And whether that was agriculture sales, or maybe that's agricultural communications.
Maybe that looks like becoming a lawyer.
Maybe you're a manager for an agribusiness, like there's so many opportunities.
Maybe you're passionate about livestock or plants or human health, because that still
impacts soil health, plant health.
I mean, all of it is tied to agriculture, like I mentioned earlier.
And so anyway, our students are getting that career success and they're having those conversations.
And like your friend, it's preparing them for a career in and out of agriculture because
you're prepared with those skills and that critical thinking mindset.
And it's just, I love watching students realize their potential.
And then by the time they graduate, they're like, wow, my freshman version of myself never
could have imagined that I'd be here because of an organization called.
No, I think it's so funny.
Even there, it's like the, what is it like the butterfly effect?
It's like, wow, who would have known that me signing up for this class because I didn't
want to take regular biology.
Yep.
It happens all the time.
Yeah.
It's going to end me up, I don't know, in the middle of Texas in the hundred degree
heat for some reason.
So it's so interesting.
Okay.
So there's a couple of questions that I've been asked a lot on my journey or, okay, one's
a question I've been asked a lot.
One is something I've been thinking about a lot.
And the first question that was asked a lot is have you noticed a difference in the people
that you've met state by state, county by county, zip code by zip code?
Cause I don't know, I, I feel like I'm just finally getting out of the South when I want
to say finally, but I'm getting out of the South right now.
I'm going to kind of like the Southwest, you know, New Mexico, Arizona, California area.
I'm curious before I answer that for myself, I'm curious on your thoughts of traveling
to all these different state conventions and seeing people in different regards.
Yeah.
I would say the biggest thing that I've recognized is the differences in cultures.
That would probably be what separates people, but ironically, because I'm constantly meeting
with FFA members and agricultural teachers and those involved in agriculture in our community
and our industry, we offer similar values of hard work, of high integrity, of learning.
And so that almost draws us all together.
And no matter where I go, it almost feels like a sense of home because of those shared
values.
But when I'm in a state like Alaska, and then I come to Texas, their cultures are different,
I've learned that on the road that there's so many ways people can live their life and
none of it is necessarily wrong.
I mean, obviously morally there's, you know, can be things like none of it, like from day
to day, none of it is wrong.
Like we all just value things and prioritize things.
And I have just really loved seeing how someone might choose to spend their day or what's
really important to them or like for a student standpoint, you get one student who is all
in on sports and then you get another student who will travel every single weekend to a
Caval Show just based on the different values that they have or the different priorities
in that time being.
And so I don't know, I just I've been fascinated by the similarity in values despite the distance
between, but also the ability to spend your time differently and still have some of those
priorities align even though it's in different tests.
But I'm curious to hear your perspective as well.
Yeah, so no, I think that's interesting.
That's always so, because yeah, I feel like for you, you're jumping across the nation
a lot more than I am.
I think mine's pretty much a straight line, right?
And that's kind of what I was thinking along the lines of what you're going to say is,
well, you're meeting with FFA members.
Like you know, it's a very niche community.
It's very similar, but I was curious about what those differences were.
So like, it's kind of what I figured.
But thank you for sharing that.
On my perspective, what I've kind of been saying is that I feel like everybody so far
has been the same sentence, but a different font.
That's so good.
That's such a good way to put that.
Yeah.
And I talked to a couple other guys when I met up with them in Oklahoma City that walked
across the country and they were like, yeah, no, dude, I feel the same way.
Like that's very much what it was for us too.
And I think a lot of it is just that the people that have stopped to talk to me or stopped
to help me, like it's that same thing, right?
Like they have similar values.
Like they're curious.
They're trying to understand what's going on.
They're open.
And you know, people that invited me into their house, like, you know, inviting the
strange, you know, again, homeless, unemployed guy into their house, you know, I'm staying
in spare bedrooms.
Some people let me stay in their kids room and they've moved them to, you know, their
other kids room, you know?
So it's like, it's a very weird, intimate, like very trusting environment.
Right.
So it's and again, I think that's really the big thing is that the people that approach
me or that helped me, like you said, share those similar values.
So it's kind of funny, like no matter what you do, as long as you're being authentic,
let me know how authentic you feel about all that, but as long as you're authentic, you'll
find people that are authentically similar as well.
Yes, 100%.
That'll like navigate and like they'll pull towards you and you'll pull towards them.
I feel like instinctually, because I can feel comfortable or safe or like a degree of trust
there compared to other people that maybe aren't aligning.
And I would 100% agree with that.
Yeah.
And that's, that's kind of what I've noticed too.
I mean, I finally, gosh, I had such bad luck finding, or now I want to say bad luck, no
luck, I guess, finding FFA members throughout the journey.
Because I know it feels weird messaging or calling schools to try to talk to the ag advisor.
That's a little bit like, are you a parent?
No.
Are you a student?
No.
You know, but I finally met up with a family in Oklahoma City or not Oklahoma City, just
outside of Oklahoma City, that, you know, their kids are super involved in FFA.
And one of them is, you know, a state officer, all this cool stuff.
And the level of conversation we were able to have right away was so different just because
of those shared values and shared experience.
So I think it's always so fun whenever I finally meet someone that, you know, either they're
a runner or they had someone go through hospice care or they're an FFA member, but that level
of conversation, finding that common ground has been so useful and helpful in terms of
support and just good conversation.
Yeah.
That's awesome.
That's so special.
And then the other question I wanted to ask you is, so let me try to preface this.
And this kind of wrapping up our conversation, I think, but I was in a little town in South
Carolina called Saluda.
And when I was walking into town, I got stopped by a few people.
And one of them was a mother daughter.
And the mom was like, it's okay if my daughter takes a picture with you.
And this kid couldn't have been more than 10 years old.
And I was like, sure.
Yeah, of course.
Yeah, whatever.
So I took a picture with her and I was like, oh my God, like, they were, they wanted me
to take a picture with their kid.
Like that's such a moment, right?
And then recently I was in, I think it was somewhere in Oklahoma too.
But this mom and son, like tracked me down.
They saw me, they followed me into the grocery store and asked to take a picture with me.
And I saw that he commented on one of my posts and that picture that I took with him, it's
his profile picture.
And I was like, this is such a weird feeling.
Like how cool, right?
Like it was just like such a surreal, like, oh my God, like this kid, like this is something
that I would have done with like a state officer or something, you know, like it's like so
funny.
And there's a concept that I'm working on myself.
I kind of call it the kid on the couch.
And it's in terms of mission statements, vision statements, when you're working on a project.
And essentially it's kind of like, there is a kid out there that is watching what you
do that is going to read your mission statement.
It's going to read your vision statement.
That's going to be inspired by what you do.
And it's kind of like be a role model, find something that's good, like always act as
if that kid on the couch is watching like a live stream of your life almost.
And again, I'm still working on it.
I want to make it more clear for, you know, a book or a post or something.
Right.
But just based off of what I've said there, like what kind of comes up for you when I
say that?
Yeah, I, I know exactly the degree or the path that you're trying to go there because
I have felt that in my own life.
And I love your analogy of like kid on a couch watching that.
That's so applicable especially for our day and age.
But as I think about my time in FFA, there's always been people throughout my journey as
a chapter member, a state officer, and now as a national officer who have expressed excitement
or it's hard because it's like, I guess what they might say, like it's so, it's so
I'm so honored to meet you.
Like that, those kinds of comments.
And it makes me stop and think like, okay, like why are you honored to meet me?
Like what is it about me?
And it's like, it's caused me to like internally think like, okay, like what is it about myself
that is like drawing them to me?
But I've realized that like when that happens, the best thing that I can do for that person
or for that, mainly the students is to give them my time in the most humble manner possible.
Because I myself have done like have like gone up to national officer like, oh my gosh,
like I feel so honored to meet you.
Thank you so much.
And like it's, I've always had very humble interactions.
Whereas maybe there's been times when like I've gone up to somebody and they're like,
oh my gosh, it's so cool to meet you.
And like they blow you off.
And they don't make you feel bad either.
Like those things.
And so to that kid that's sitting on the couch, I would want them to walk away being like,
wow, she's really humble.
Maybe I should like, what, how can I be more humble?
And how can I be more like X trait or X characteristic?
And so like my hope is that my values are always how my actions are and like that goes
a line.
And so that way like others can hopefully maybe act in that manner.
And that makes sense.
But it happens all the time.
It can honestly be a little overwhelming because I can think to myself, well, I'm just, I'm
just Samara.
Like, why do you want to like take another picture of me?
Or like, why do you want to like talk about like X?
Like sometimes it can be confusing, but I've realized like, okay, well, this is a unique
stage of your life that only lasts for a year.
And so what kind of positive seeds can I plant to have that student thinking about?
I'm like, okay, maybe I want to have called X trait.
Don't think about X.
And so I don't know if that answers your question because I too am pondering this thought in
my mind.
I mean, and like it just happened like yesterday, like a student had came up to me and was like,
I want to be the next National Athlete President.
Like what do I have to do?
And I was like, oh, like, so like, how can I best support them, you know, in a humble,
grounded manner where I've observed their needs?
So I was trying to think of it like that.
Yeah, it's so hard.
Does that answer the question?
Yeah, I know.
I know I kind of sprung that on you and it's, it's no, it's such an important conversation
because I think people, it can be hard to like know how to respond or react.
Like when someone like gives you a compliment in that way or like, it's excited to see you
in that way.
And so it's a, it's a good conversation to have.
Yeah.
Kind of like a, it's, it's so, I mean, cause for me, I'm 90.
Today's day 91 actually for my walk.
So it's like, I'm 90, almost a hundred days in, like, I'm like, I'm used to it.
I like, it's just get through it at this point.
Right.
But there's people that meet me every day.
Oh, I saw you on the news.
I saw you on TikTok.
I saw you on social media.
Are you, are you the guy?
You know?
And it's always like, okay, this is, this is a cool experience for them too.
Like just as much as this whole thing is for me, like this conversation, this meeting is
also important and impactful for them.
Like almost more so than for me in a way.
Right.
Yeah.
I had a mentor tell me once, and this has helped me a lot too.
And I just remembered it.
They said it could be your 1000th time, like meeting a student or giving a workshop or
getting a keynote speech, but it's their first time.
And so how can you make it the most impactful way for them?
And I just remembered that.
And that really does, that is something that I think about a lot.
Like, okay, well I might be tired or overwhelmed right now, but it's their first time or possibly
their only time interacting with a national officer or their only time interacting with
somebody who's walking all across the country.
And like, yeah.
And so I try to remember that too, from a humility standpoint.
Okay.
So there's, I can't remember who it was.
It was like, it's okay.
I'm like stumbling all over myself.
There's a business creator that I watched, Alex Hermosy, and he tells this story.
I think it's Michael Jordan, but Michael Jordan, I guess, was asked in an interview, like why
he never sits the bench or why he always tries his best.
And he was like, there's a dad that was able to scrape together enough money to bring him
and his son to this game.
It's going to be the only chance that they ever get to go to a game like this.
Like I know that I'm important enough that they are like, they're there to see me, but
I'm humble enough to give them a good show.
Like I'm doing this for them.
So it's kind of like, it's such a weird thing of like knowing how important you are, but
also being humble enough to not let it get to your head.
Yes, you just hit the nail on the head.
Yeah, I'm going to have to find that story and link it in the show notes because I'm
like, I'm butchering it.
But I think that that gets the game, I guess that that explains the game then, right?
Of what it is that you're trying to do is knowing how important it is for them, but
being humble enough to, I guess, still show up.
100%.
Because you don't want to shoot yourself short because like what you're doing is really impactful
and it is for you, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity.
But at the same time, you don't want to run people over in the midst.
So like, that's exactly that's that's exactly it.
We did it.
We got it.
Awesome.
I'd probably say that's a good point to wrap up.
Is there anything else that you want to tell the people of the internet before we hop off?
Yeah, if someone's not familiar with FFA, I encourage you to go to FFA.org and just
scroll through our website and learn about what our students are doing.
Also, we're very active on Instagram, Facebook, those good things.
Always love sharing the message of agriculture and agriculture education.
So love to connect if you ever have any more questions.
But again, thank you for having me.
Best of luck on your journey.
It's going to be an incredible rest of the way.
Hopefully you can stay cool kind of as you go through the southwest and wishing you safe,
healthy and happy travels.
Perfect.
Thank you.
I appreciate it.
It's going to be my mantra the next couple of months.
But just like Amara said, all the information for the National Future Farmers of America
Association will be linked down in the show notes, their website, Facebook, Instagram,
I don't know if you guys are on Twitter, whatever information I can find and ways to connect
with the organization I will put down below.
But if you have any questions, comments, concerns, emotional outbursts about the organization,
I'm always down to field questions.
And I'm sure if you DM the pages, they'll answer questions as well.
And if you can find Amara, I'm sure she'll answer too.
So yes, I'm like volunteering you for things.
But anyway, Amara, thank you so much for your time today.
I appreciate it.
And I hope you have a great rest of your term and beyond.
Thank you.
And once again, thank you to the listeners today for spending some time with Amara and
I.
I think we had a great conversation about the impact that FFA has on students all the
way from Alaska to Florida, New York to California, and just how impactful and important that
connection of the Blue Jacket has on these members being able to make true connections
with one another.
I'd say really the big three takeaways I have from this conversation are the importance
of being open, present and curious and conversations with those that you meet.
Really thinking about the question of what it means to be a leader with the kid on the
couch analogy that we kind of came up with and just really understanding that when it
comes to building an organization, there's a few key factors.
And I'd really say it's about really digging your roots down deep and being niche and understanding
the problem that you saw the community that you serve.
And then over time, being open to the possibility of opening it up to others.
I think that's something that the FFA has done really well and will continue to do well
moving forward.
But once again, if you'd like to learn more about the FFA and the impact that they have,
how you can support, please go ahead and look in the show notes below.
I will link their website, social media and everything down there.
And if you'd like to donate to my Walk Across America fundraiser, the link is down there
as well.
And I would appreciate any support you can give, whether it's monetarily, whether it's
sharing, commenting, helping with the algorithm, really just promoting the good work that these
organizations do.
But as always, remember to have fun, stay safe, be yourself, and I'll see you guys again
next week.
Bye now.