Ranch Work Done Right – Becoming a WITB Ninja

At Ranching for Profit we make a big deal about WITB (working in the business: the day-to-day operational work) and WOTB (working on the business: strategy, planning, and assessment). Most farmers and ranchers spend far too much time on WITB and neglect WOTB. Much of my writing and speaking focuses on WOTB, but for this article I want to flip the lens and talk about WITB.

Sometimes people leave Ranching for Profit thinking WITB is bad or that we should feel guilty for doing it. I don’t believe that at all. The truth is, most of us got into this business because we love the WITB. We like working with our hands, being outside, handling livestock, and doing what we perceive as the real work of ranching. And let’s be clear: WITB must get done, and it must get done well. If no one gets up, goes outside, and does the work, the ranch doesn’t exist.

The problem isn’t WITB. The problem is how easily WITB consumes us.

There is never a shortage of work on a farm or ranch. There’s always something to fix, improve, build, upgrade, or finally tackle. Such as the corral that needs work, the water system that could be better, another cross fence, or that project your spouse has been reminding you about for years. The work can be endless, if we let it. And if we’re honest, some of us like it that way. We complain about long hours, harsh weather, and never getting away, but when we step back and look at our choices, we often have no one to blame but ourselves.

Each year I get to see inside hundreds of farm and ranch businesses. One of the most striking differences is how effectively or ineffectively they use labor. On some ranches, one person can comfortably manage 1,000 cows and still have margin in their life. On another ranch, someone runs 100 cows, works dawn to dusk 365 days a year, and is “too busy” for WOTB, family time, vacation, or heaven forbid, professional improvement.

The difference isn’t work ethic.

The difference is design.

The ranch that can manage 1,000 cows comfortably has intentionally created simplicity, scale, and efficiency. While the one working 365 days has unintentionally become very good at creating jobs. The first is being run by a WITB Ninja. The second by a WITB amateur.

The term WITB Ninja was coined by John Locke, Ranching for Profit instructor and Texas rancher. Years ago when John first attended a Ranching for Profit School and then joined Executive Link, he knew he wanted different results from his business. He also knew there was a lot of work that had to get done every single day. His breakthroughs were going to come from intentional WOTB, but he couldn’t just stop doing WITB. He had to get better at WITB to create time and bandwidth for WOTB.

He had to become a WITB Ninja.

A WITB Ninja relentlessly focuses on making tasks simpler and more efficient. They focus on questioning whether the task needs to be done at all. If it does need to be done, they ask:

• Do I need to be the person doing it?
• Can it be outsourced?
• Can someone else be trained to do it?
• Can it be eliminated altogether?
• What value does this task actually add to the bottom line?

Let me use calving season as an example.

As I write this, calving season is right around the corner for many of my neighbors. I hear the familiar complaints: long days, late nights, endless checking, and dealing with every problem that arises. On some ranches, calving 50 heifers becomes a full-time job. On other ranches, one person can oversee the calving of 500 heifers. Do 50 heifers really require full-time supervision, or have we built facilities, genetics, and management practices that make that necessary? How many problems do we inadvertently create by “helping” the cows? What if you only looked at calving cows a couple of times a day? How many additional calves would you actually lose? It is probably fewer than you think.

That means all the extra costs of labor, stress, facilities, machinery, breakdowns, and headaches need to be charged against those few calves you “saved.” When you do that math honestly, the story often changes.

I’m not advocating not checking calving heifers. I am advocating evaluating everything you do.

Just because you feel like you’re good at something, or good enough doesn’t mean you’re excused from this. A WITB Ninja is constantly evaluating how they can get better.  How can we refine the methods? How can we improve the process?  

A WITB Ninja is skilled at getting things done effectively and efficiently. Effectiveness must come first. We must ask “should” we be doing this task before we work on getting better at doing it. A WITB Ninja doesn’t let insignificant jobs creep into the schedule, they slice those out and focus on the things that move the needle for the business. A WITB Ninja questions everything! Not because they’re lazy, but because they value their time, energy, and attention. And because they understand that the goal isn’t to be busy. The goal is to build a business that works.

So as we start this new year I recommend we all take a moment to really look at how we use our labor asking those WITB Ninja questions of each task. If you need help or inspiration we are here to help. To get started, head over to our YouTube channel and watch this video: