Ancient Leadership, Modern Ranching with Stark Ranch

In this episode of From the Pasture with Hired Hand, Molly heads to North Texas just north of Gainesville, where the Red River bends and the elevation rolls—home to Stark Ranch and its steady climb as a premier cattle operation.

But this isn’t your standard ranching conversation. Molly sits down with Jeremy Townley, Business Lead at Stark Ranch, to talk about an unexpected influence on the way he leads: Attila the Hun. Yep—really. Jeremy shares why that leadership playbook has stuck with him and how its ideas—clear direction, courage, discipline, and staying ready—show up in modern ranch life more than you’d think.

As a first-generation rancher overseeing both the cattle and construction sides of a growing enterprise, Jeremy walks through what it takes to build something from the ground up without cutting corners. From people to pastures to projects, this conversation is all about making steady, smart decisions and playing the long game—one season at a time.

Stark Ranch: https://www.thestarkranch.com/

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hi there, I'm Molly. And I'm Jamie. We're the owners of Hired Hand Software. And this is season six of our From the Pasture podcast. For more than 15 years, we've been helping breeders promote their pedigree livestock with our easy-to-use, animal management-driven website software.

SPEAKER_00 0:18

Each week, we bring you stories from the pasture, breeding philosophies, ranch traditions, cattle knowledge, and conversation with folks using Hired Hand to power their livestock marketing. So settle in for today's episode of From the Pasture with Hired Hand.

SPEAKER_01 0:33

Welcome back to From the Pasture with Hired Hand. Today's episode takes us to North Texas, just north of Gainesville, where the Red River bends, the elevation rolls, and Stark Ranch continues its steady rise as a premier cattle operation. But instead of the standard ranching conversation, we're going to take a different trail today, one guided by the leadership playbook of an unexpected teacher, Attila the Hun. Our guest, Jeremy Townley, business lead for Stark Ranch, lists leadership secrets of Attila the Hun as one of his favorite books. And when you hear his story, a first-generation rancher overseeing both the cattle and construction sides of a growing enterprise, you start to see how Attila's principles of clarity, courage, discipline, and readiness show up in modern ranching more than you might think. So saddle up. Today we're going to be exploring what happens when ancient leadership meets modern ranching. Thanks for joining me, Jeremy.

SPEAKER_02 1:31

Thank you. Looking forward to it.

SPEAKER_01 1:35

Well, before we jump into our Attila the Hun themed outline, uh, we've got to start with the obvious question. Uh, when did you first read Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun?

SPEAKER_02 1:45

Probably around 25 years ago. Um I was doing sales seminars and I was in sales and doing seminars and reading a lot of self-help books at the time. And I was at a bookstore and um the title caught my eye, and I was wondering how does that relate? And um I read over it briefly and it turned out to be a really good book, and I've read it several times. I don't know how many times I got it marked up, highlighted, referred to it back to it often. Um, but I found out it relates to uh a lot of things I do in everyday aspect.

SPEAKER_01 2:22

So you still have that original copy you purchased? That's the one that's all marked up?

SPEAKER_02 2:27

I don't. I loaned it to somebody and uh it did not make it back to me. So I'll have to get another copy and read it a few more times, get it marked up and highlighted again.

SPEAKER_01 2:40

Well, hopefully they're making uh good use out of it.

SPEAKER_02 2:43

I hope so.

SPEAKER_01 2:45

Well, what was it about that book that stuck with you? Um, you know, I d I don't think that's one most people would naturally, you know, put that and ranching in the same sentence. Uh, but when you think about leadership, it it seems to track. So tell me a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_02 3:01

Uh it really, it was just the title. Um, Attila the Hun being in a self-help section um wasn't what I was looking for. So it really just caught my eye and brought out the curiosity of what does that mean? And uh so strictly just by circumstance of being in a bookstore and actually catching the title and then grabbing it up, that sounds interesting. And being curious about it, man, that other than that, it wasn't recommended, or no matter I didn't hear anybody reading it. It was purely a t a till of the hun. So it just sounded interesting at the time when I seen it.

SPEAKER_01 3:42

Well, we're kind of going to build today's episode around the principles that are outlined in that book and walk through Stark Ranch using that framework. So are you ready to start with the first one?

SPEAKER_02 3:53

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 3:55

All right. So we have a leader must know his mission. Uh so the quote from the book is without a clear mission, there can be no victory. Uh so tell me, you know, before before any warrior or rancher, you know, heads into a day's work, um, they have to understand their mission. So let's start there. Uh, when you stepped into the the business lead role at Stark Ranch, what did you understand your mission to be?

SPEAKER_02 4:20

My first step was to learn, learn, and more learning. Um the construction part of it, I've done it premier uh pretty much my entire life. So I've got the construction part down, but when it came to the cattle, other than one day having a dream, you know, running cattle, I didn't know anything about it. So I knew I was out of my element. Um I knew I better get with some people that know a lot more than I do about cattle, and some smart people. So um really getting meetings with people that knew the industry, knew the cattle, getting as many introductions as I can, um bringing as many people I could that know cattle to the ranch, telling them what we would like to do, drive them to the ranch, getting their thoughts, how they would do it, what they would do, and getting any insight I could from them. So my first mission was to learn as much as I possibly can because I knew we were going out and getting into bringing longhorns onto the ranch. So I I needed to start learning. So that was my whole everything I did for uh weeks was talking to as many people as I can to get the most insight to really learn what we can do. And then a lot of the people were just cattle people, so I had to not just get the cattle people, but get people within the longhorn industry.

SPEAKER_01 5:54

So you mentioned that you know it's always been a dream of yours to run cattle as well. Is this kind of your your dream position then, having construction and cattle together? Or um, how did you tell me a little bit about how you came into the role?

SPEAKER_02 6:10

Well, our owner, John Smith, um we've worked together. I've worked for him since 2009. We went through, sold a company a few times and had moved up to Colorado for four years for a sale when I was coming back to Texas and really didn't know exactly what I was gonna do. I had a small dirt construction, he had a small dirt construction, so we partnered up on that, but he's got the ranch, and he gave me this opportunity, and I I had it taken. I was like, wow, but yes, it is a dream position. It's very fortunate, very lucky to be offered this, and uh I I I enjoy it every day.

SPEAKER_01 6:53

So as a first generation rancher, what mission drives you personally?

SPEAKER_02 7:00

My mission is to be better today than I was yesterday. Um really try to learn something every day, whether it's you know, a feeding program or what vaccines, but I really enjoyed every day going out viewing the cattle when I feed them, learn something every day from the cattle. Um that really gets me going every day, because that's the first thing I do. We have a meeting, we go over things, but as soon as it's light enough, I'm feeding the cattle every day. So um that I have no problem getting out of bed to do that.

SPEAKER_01 7:40

So, what does success look like for you when you think about the cattle program and the land that you're managing and the ranch overall?

SPEAKER_02 7:49

Success to me really is obviously we want a profitable business, um, but quality, uh have a quality herd, and um I think we're on our way there. But as we grow within it, learn to do things, doing the right thing at the right time, have a profitable business. But um at the end of the day, if we have profitability, we keep growing our herd, we keep doing the right things, I think we'll have a business that uh John can be proud of in the longhorn part of it. And if if it's a business that he's proud of, I would call that success.

SPEAKER_01 8:34

The next quote that we're gonna center a few questions around from the book is he who knows the ground upon which he fights will prevail. Uh so Attila believed that no leader should act until he fully understood the land beneath him. Her ranching, that lesson, I don't think couldn't couldn't be more literal if we tried. Uh so describe Stark Ranch to me, the the rolling elevation, the the trees, the mile of Red River footage. Uh kind of paint the picture for us and then talk to me a little bit about how that shapes your daily work.

SPEAKER_02 9:06

So the ranch aesthetically is one of the nicest ranches you can visit. Um, the views, the aesthetics of the ranch. There's not a day that you if you're having a bad day, drive around the ranch and see the scenery, it can make any bad day a good day. Then you add the longhorns into it, that even makes it better. We're very fortunate to have the size that we need. Um we have good grass, lots of grass, and um we have rolling terrain. There's there's not much level spot, so all the terrain it is rolling. Um big hills, we overlook the Red River, it drops way down. Um a lot of elevation changes, big trees, lots of trees. Uh, we have lots of water on the ranch. Um all the water we have water, plenty of water in every pasture. Um so aesthetically, it's really nice, but functionally, it's really set up great to be raising cattle. Um the Red River part of it, that's just something to help to make the day go by, the views. Um, it doesn't get much nicer than that. Go down there, it can sure make a day feel good for you. Um currently we're not we're not throwing high numbers of new cattle into it, so we're fortunate to be able to grow into it. Um our Longhorn Count, we we have plenty of grass. Um, so it's allowing us to grow slowly and learn land steward as we go. Um grass is something that we're really concentrating on right now to make sure this winter we know the right way to protect our pastures next year as we grow, we won't get into a problem of overgrazing or anything. So size, grass, water, trees for cover, um, it doesn't get much better. We we have it all.

SPEAKER_01 11:11

So even with the the amount of grass and water, do you have to kind of play plan your grazing? Do you do rotational grazing or um you know how do the herd movements work uh based on the terrain?

SPEAKER_02 11:24

So right now we have pastures. We have pretty good cross fencing in different pastures. So we do rotate from um pastures with the number of longhorns we have and the size of pastures. We haven't had to worry too much about grazing to ensure we're not overgrazing yet. We'll get there. Most of our rotating and separating the groups and all that's for breeding purposes. Um as we grow, that'll come more and more important. So we really want to learn better, have our best practices in place for the grass before we get to that point, and uh make sure we keep our pastures in premier condition.

SPEAKER_01 12:08

So North Texas weather can be pretty wild as I understand it. Uh, what have heat and storms and sudden shifts uh taught you about adapting quickly?

SPEAKER_02 12:20

Living in North Texas forever, uh we've been, you know, tornadoes, ice storms, heat, droughts, and everything. Since we started in the Longhorn, we haven't had too many things drastic one way or another, other than no rain for um a certain amount of time or some high winds, um, better planning. Um study the weather. We talk about the weather every morning, uh, what's coming, what's not coming. Um, to be prepared. Um what instances we've had thus far, we've been prepared. So as we have plans, try to plan ahead to get in front of it and not to react to it. Once you start reacting, you start getting behind. But once we do react, we we need to learn from that. What can we do different where we're not out there trying to get caught up with an Mother Nature? Because that's sometimes that's impossible. But make sure our cows are prepared for the weather that's going to approach.

SPEAKER_01 13:20

How's the property set up in terms of like outbuildings or cover for the animals? Are those things that are coming in the next phases? Do you have a few that are ready now?

SPEAKER_02 13:31

All of the above. Um, we do have buildings and facilities. Um we just finished a weaning pasture and built weaning pins. We put overhead covers and structures in there for protection of them. Every other pasture right now, or most every other pasture, has plenty of trees and stuff for shelter, and it has terrains and bottoms where they can get out of wind. Uh a couple of the pastures that are pretty light on trees, we're building overhead covers for them to ensure that they have the proper protection. So it's we've got a lot built, a lot in place, but we're still adding on to get to that point for everywhere.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

And working with you over the past few months, um, I believe that uh it's public that Stark Ranch West is coming or is is in the works uh across the interstate. Um, how does knowing your terrain influence how you're planning that expans expansion?

SPEAKER_02 14:27

Well, the the very lucky to already get running cattle, the Longhorns, already building facilities and fencing over on the Stark Ranch to gain that experience before we do the Stark West. And it it's it's an open canvas, so we've got to see every inch of the ranch. We've got to clear from doing the boundary fences to really have some insight to build the cross fences. We haven't even started the facilities or the working pins, the weaning pins yet. But learning everything that we've learned thus far on the Star French has really gave us a lot of insight to how we want to build the Star Quest. And it's not been a rush to get that done while we're doing this. We're getting to the order we're getting to do it in, we get to really make sure we have the lessons learned in place to develop it correct in the way that's functional, ease for the cattle, and ease for us.

SPEAKER_01 15:54

Well, the next quote from the book that we're gonna focus on for a few questions is the strength of the horde is found in the quality of its warriors. Uh so on a ranch, where we're gonna the warriors aren't soldiers, they're the cattle, the genetics, uh, the bloodlines that you're choosing to build your your Stark Ranch herd with. How do how do you decide which genetics are going to move Stark Ranch forward?

SPEAKER_02 16:17

So right now, a lot of studying. Um I'm on everybody's website. I'm reading Hired Hands results on all the sales, all the averages, top sires, top dams, learning all that that I can. Um, but I really rely heavily on people in the industry talking to them. Um I have some favorites. I don't know if I've been in long enough to know that's the direction on that one we want. So I sure have some favorites, and I pick some bloodlines or sires that we want to bring into the herd, but I double check with some people in the industry and make sure I'm doing the correct approach to it in the correct direction.

SPEAKER_01 17:09

Now that you you kind of brought it up, we got to dig a little deeper. So tell me a few of the bloodlines that you've picked out and maybe a few of the folks who are mentoring you or giving you advice on on if your gut was right or not.

SPEAKER_02 17:22

Absolutely. So some of the families that I really like and we've got into our herd is one of my favorite cows is Hawaiian Dancer, which is out an Indian dancer, and it goes all the way back to Night Safari. So that's definitely one of the families that um I pay a lot of attention to. And Night Safari is brings in the Swahili family. So Hawaiian dancer, Swahili, really into that family. Jam and Jenny, um uh Miss Rebecca or Miss Becca, uh, some of the families that I really look into. And then on the bloodline side, Rebel HR is a really sire that I like. We have a lot of hanging tough, like hanging tough, uh, Cowboys Tough checks, Juana checks. Uh our herds heavily influenced by that bloodline. And I would say the biggest supporter, person I reach out to, probably wear them out, calling them and asking them too many questions on some days is Bob Loomis. Uh Bob Loomis is very, he's definitely the reason we got the herd that we have, the genetics we have, the quality we have. Um I talk to Bob all the time. I call him and ask him questions all the time. I try to go up there and ride around with them asking questions. I wear them out, I'm sure, on questions, but uh I try to go up there and ride around with them at least once a month and try to gain as much insight as I can and learn as much as I can about the Longhorn. Then another Rex and Sarish Glen Denny, I've had to reach out to them for some insight and very, very nice, got on it, helped me out, got me information I needed. So that would be the two biggest influences for the Longhorns.

SPEAKER_01 19:20

Were you able to attend the Glen Denning sale at all these past few years?

SPEAKER_02 19:25

Uh I've last year, um, well, this year, one of them, yes. Um I'm still relatively new, so I got four or five sales under my belt, but I'm still rookie at it.

SPEAKER_01 19:39

Well, between that and some of the cows you mentioned, all having the BL prefix, I would uh I would say you're in good company getting advice from Mr. Loomis then. What traits do you feel like are non-negotiable when you're choosing future cattle and future breedings for the ranch?

SPEAKER_02 19:57

Temperament, uh, that would be the biggest priority. Um temperament is it it has to be temperament. Uh, we've had a couple of wild won wild ones and they really distract the whole herd or the whole pasture group. Um it makes it a little more difficult to work with them, and it's it it it's not good. And then soundness. Um and I'm still learning about that. Bob, for example, is one of them if you look at one in five seconds and tell you everything about it. I'm going, well, why is that, or what is that you see? So I'm still learning that, but temperament and soundness is the two biggest. Um, I think everything else we could really work with, you know, horn horn structure and uh tip to tip is very important, and colors very important too. But uh that is something we can work with with some of the bulls that we have. So if we got the right temperament and soundness, um I think we can work with the rest of it.

SPEAKER_01 21:00

Do you have any calves on the ground that are starting to show if your breeding decisions are paying off, or is that is that down the road yet still for you all?

SPEAKER_02 21:10

We do have some on the ground. Got a first set of winged heifers we winged um during the spring, so that'd be the first. We got new fall calves on the ground. And uh we got no, it's a really exciting. We have about 15 new fall calves on the ground right now. Or 16. We had one last night, sorry.

SPEAKER_01 21:32

Any one or two in particular that you're you're really excited to watch grow up?

SPEAKER_02 21:37

Absolutely. Uh Maddie, Bessie, and Betsy Bald, they're all in like Flynn daughters. Um, and it wasn't structured that way, but they're all in like Flynn. They're personally growing, and it really impressed me. But all the calves that hit the ground, they're dynamite. They're really excited to see them, and they're all Django calves. So in like fun daughters having Django calves, it's they're pretty shiny. They look good.

SPEAKER_01 22:06

Well, the next quote in the book that we're going to touch on, uh, or from the book is discipline is the weapon of the victorious. So Attila believed that victory belonged to those who prepared every single day, not just when the battle arrived. And as you're probably, as you can attest or are learning, uh Ranch life is is no different. It's it's work every single day. Um what routines or systems help you keep Stark Ranch running smoothly?

SPEAKER_02 22:34

Routines probably the biggest word out of that. Um routine is something that we take and implement. We want to do the same thing the same way every day. So start with our feeding. I I feed the same time, I feed the same order, I feed the same amount every day. Um one, well now the cattle's meeting me when I'm there, they know when I'm gonna show up and they're ready. But also the days that I can't do feeding or anything else, everybody understands the process and they go do the same thing the same way. Um so very disciplined in that area. And we go from that from how we work the cattle, how we move the cattle. We try to do it the same way every time. Um it creates confusion and it seems to go wild when we do different approaches on different something different. So that seems to go south when we try to change it up in a big way.

SPEAKER_01 23:39

So one of the things I'm curious about, um, we've interviewed a lot of big operations, medium-sized, small operations. And I don't know if I've ever had anyone tell me that they have a meeting every morning to go over the plans for the day for the ranch. Tell me a little bit about how that came about, what you all talk about, how that's made a difference in your routine. Uh I'm just curious to learn more about that.

SPEAKER_02 24:04

So usually I'm out before everybody else gets in. I've already probably fed most of the cattle, but then we'll join in. I'll catch with uh catch up with every one of them at the bus barn. I'll get them, we need to do this, get the task lined out, but then I'll ask them what happened over there, did you see anything different? But it's not just only lining out the cattle at our meeting. We were lining out our dirt construction and everything else at that point in time. It's just a quick, here's what we need to get done today, here's the tasks that need to be done today, and make sure they have an objective why we need to get it done today and have a bigger picture. We need to get step one, two, and three done today because Friday we got to do step four and five. That way they just know what what the end result is and not what just needs to be done today, but what needs what we're leading up to get get done in a couple days or by the end of the week.

SPEAKER_01 25:07

Also make it easier to celebrate some small wins as a team with all the hard work going into the ranch?

SPEAKER_02 25:14

Oh, for sure. Absolutely. Uh we celebrate every win that we can get, all the small victories. We consider everything a victory from the first time you winged a calf, from the first time you unloaded a calf to the first time you branded a calf. Um, because it all has a level of nervous that we haven't done it. We want to make sure we do it the right way. And then once we get done, we we're very happy and we'll celebrate the small victories.

SPEAKER_01 25:43

We were preparing for today's podcast. I asked you a few uh a few questions early on, and you listed the skid steer and the side-by-side as some of your favorite tools. How do they help you kind of train the operation and and do the day-to-day work?

SPEAKER_02 25:59

The side-by-side is probably the best tool we have on the ranch. One, it gets you up close and personal. So when you're out driving through the cattle, you can clearly get up close to them, but you can see everything. Um, even driving out the fences, it gives you the up close view of the fences, of the grass, the ease of it, um, being able to go over terrain and not having to drive a vehicle when it's rainy, muddy. The side-by-side is probably the best tool that we have. The skid steer is probably the handiest tool that we have because it, you know, it can help on anything when we need to do maintenance, or if we have a washout, or we need to move a couple bells of hay real quick instead of going back and get the truck or tractor, um, feeding uh maintenance, moving a little rock. It can do pretty much at a light scale, it can pretty much cover everything. So the side-by-size I would say is the best tool. Skid steer is the handiest tool.

SPEAKER_01 27:38

The next quote in the book we're going to examine is a loyal warrior is worth more than a thousand deserters. So ranching and and breeding longhorns obviously depends a lot on relationships, whether it be the people on the ranch, your neighbors, business partners, mentors, all things we've touched on a little bit. Um Attila believed that loyalty was a leader's true currency. So, what does loyalty look like within your team or within your ranch and cattle program?

SPEAKER_02 28:06

So we're very lucky to have the group of people that we have working at Stark Ranch. Um, they've actually been there longer than I have. Um I've worked with John for since 2009, but they've been on the ranch and they've been part of the ranch life, albeit be horses or something different. We're all new to the longhorn part of it. But they all have the desire. What I mean by the desire, they they have the want to um take care of and manage the longhorns and the cattle. Um, they have the desire to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Um and they all have whatever it takes attitude. So they all have great attitudes. So if we gotta stay late or if we gotta come in late at night because something happens, they all understand that's part of it and they're all happy to do it. Um so it's a great attitude, great bunch of guys. But, you know, we make sure if they gotta go do something, go do it. We got you covered.

SPEAKER_01 29:10

A few of this, the Longhorn-specific mentors you've mentioned, like Bob Loomis and the Glenn Dennings, um, but tell me a little bit about maybe some of the folks who have helped you with the, you know, layout of the land as you're working on your expansion, or you know, helped you with maybe your chute or your working pens, those types of things.

SPEAKER_02 29:29

So we definitely um Bob Richardson's really the one that's helped me design our fencing and our pins, and um he's he's done it all of his life and he's built cattle facilities and has a lot of knowledge in it. So bringing him in to help us design how we do the weaning pins, but I've also brought Bob Loomis in on that as well. Um, but Bob Richardson, he's been instrumental, and we're gonna meet up again this time or this week or start west. All right, here's where we're gonna do the fences, here's where we're gonna do the cross fences. Is this where we should put the working pins? Where should we put the weaning pins? Um so bringing him in and his knowledge and the lessons we've learned thus far, uh absolutely helping with uh the structures of what we need, whether it's fencing or buildings or covers or whatever it shall be.

SPEAKER_01 30:28

If you look back at the time that you all decided to get longhorns, but you know, you were just getting going, are there any ranches that you visited that stood out to you? Or, you know, is that something that helped you prepare for how you wanted your own layout and systems to go?

SPEAKER_02 30:43

Uh yeah, I keep going back. Bob's the one, Bob Loomis would be the one that uh was the first Longhorn ranch that I went and visited. And I have plans to try to get to five or six more ranches within the next several months. Um so want to continue to learn and keep continuing to visit one learning people in the industry, but uh learning how to everybody's got everything set up. Um I can't imagine I wouldn't learn something that would benefit us one way or another on any ranch we'd go visit. So that's all my to-do list. I I haven't got to that point yet, but we're working on it.

SPEAKER_01 31:28

Well, you mentioned that you made it to a few sales last year and that you have bookmarked a few more coming up that you'd like to attend. How do you feel like as a new breeder, how important is it to build trust and make a connection with the people like the Loomises or Glen Dennings or, you know, some uh many others that have been in the industry for a while and have maybe stood in your shoes, whether it be two, five, ten years ago?

SPEAKER_02 31:54

I think it's probably one of the most important things we can do if we want to be successful in this energy or industry. Um you can have the best longhorns, you can be doing the best job, but if people don't know you, don't trust you, and don't understand your herd and how you do things, I don't think you'll be very successful. So it's probably one of the most important things you can't do.

SPEAKER_01 32:20

Are there any tips or tricks you would give to newer breeders when it comes to the intimidation factor of calling up the Bob Loomises or, you know, going and shaking the hands of the Glen Dennings? Uh any advice you can give in that way?

SPEAKER_02 32:35

Absolutely. I mean, it's nervous for the first time, but you just gotta do it. It there's most I haven't met anybody that's bit my head off or was was absolutely not right that I gave them a call. They've all been 100% nice, respectful, and could help out any way possible. Um so thus far, everybody that I've talked to or I've asked or called upon in the longhorn industry is 100% supportive and helpful. Um, so I don't have any bad times that I've reached out and said I'll never do that again. It's all been positive.

SPEAKER_01 33:21

Well, often when you talk about loyalty or, you know, making connections, building trust, uh, in the longhorn industry, especially, a lot of it goes back to marketing and you know, publicity and those sorts of things. Uh, tell me a little bit about maybe lessons learned or approaches you've taken to social media, to marketing, to getting your name out and building loyalty that way.

SPEAKER_02 33:45

So a lot of the social media part, I'm brand new to, and um learning that, really relying on my kids on helping me out on that. They seem to be the experts in that world. Um, but I do realize it's very important. My prior history with the construction, the business we were in, we had to do that. So definitely marketing is one of the most important things you can do. Um, like previously said earlier, is you can be the best or you can have a great herd, you can be doing great things, but if nobody knows, you're never gonna get to where you need to be to succeed. So uh a long time ago, somebody said you got to toot your own horn, and that's what the social media is. You gotta toot your own horn, you gotta put it out there. Hey, look what we're doing, look what we have, look what we're creating, look what we're building, and be genuinely um excited about what you're doing. Make sure that you truly believe in what you're doing, and you'll transfer that belief as you market yourself and uh you get other people to believe in you. But it'll bring in the support you need. So social media is very important for that. And the website's very important for that too. Um I I don't if you don't have those things, I don't think you'll end up in a successful business.

SPEAKER_01 35:11

Well, the next uh quote that stuck out in the book uh was prepare before the cold winds arrive. Uh so basically a leader plans for winter, I think was the main message. Um so in Texas, you know, planning for the lean times is usually, you know, kind of a survival tactic. So the cattle markets went from strong to record highs, highs to kind of easing back. Um, how do you prepare for those shifts, you know, that you've probably experienced, or what's your what's your game plan coming up to make sure you all are prepared?

SPEAKER_02 35:42

So we have clear direction for morrow. Here's the direction I want you guys to go. Here's what we want to accomplish. So we take that direction. We develop our plan, we develop our goals, and we stay the course. Um there's gonna be volatility, um, there's gonna be changes, but we can't react to every change. Um we're in it for the long haul. Don't do something short-term, like overgraze this spot or something like that to mess up your long-term plan. So I definitely say stay the course, keep your progress moving forward, and don't overreact. But be prepared to adjust because if it's a long-term adjustment or long-term change in the market or weather or whatever, you got to be smart about it and be willing to make changes when it's appropriate. But don't overreact to something quick, stay the course. You have a good plan, stick with it and push through it.

SPEAKER_01 36:46

So you've mentioned a few times that you all have been very intentional with the number of cattle that you're adding to the ranch. How many head are you at today?

SPEAKER_02 36:55

Longhorn-wise, 72.

SPEAKER_01 36:58

And how do you balance the numbers, you know, with with your with your future plans? Do you have a plan for how many you'd like to both purchase and you know, calve out every year? Or uh talk to me a little bit about the plans for growth.

SPEAKER_02 37:13

So really what I've gotten away from focusing too many much on is headcount of the Longhorn. Um, one of my biggest mistakes is when we first got in, I was worried about head count and went with quantity, not quality. So I learned it's it's all about quality. Um you can get one really great cow or 10 average cows, you're gonna make do better with one great cow, then you got nine less cows to feed and all that. So we don't get too tied up into numbers. Um, so our plan moving forward is not gonna be we want to be at 150 mama cows or 150 total head count. We're more worried about the bloodlines, um, the breeding groups. So we're developing three breeding groups right now. Next year, I think we'll really look into um adding a fourth breeding group. And once we get those groups um completely developed and happy where it is, then we'll look at something additional. But we're more worried about the who and the what and the quality more than how many.

SPEAKER_01 38:33

So have you ever caught yourself at a sale or watching a sale online and one comes in the ring that doesn't make your, you know, wasn't on your radar when you were doing your research for those breeding groups or for for adding, and you find yourself really wanting to bid or or buy her?

SPEAKER_02 38:50

Yes, and I've done it. So me and Bob's both done that. Uh had some that wasn't on our plan, but it we feel like it just was a really smart thing to purchase because um really value add. So we've definitely done that.

SPEAKER_01 39:08

I feel like that's the hardest part is being patient, right? You can have all those great plans of your breeding groups and and strategically adding, but then they're always out of nowhere. There at least comes a few that you're like, wow, I gotta have her.

SPEAKER_02 39:21

No, yes, we've done that for sure.

SPEAKER_01 39:26

Well, the next quote that stood out from the book is defeat is a teacher wiser than victory. Uh so you know, in all of our interviews over the years with all of our uh all of the ranchers, there's always a few stories that uh start because something didn't go according to plan. And those seem to be the ones that stick out. Uh, what was a moment where things didn't go as planned for you, but that they did teach you something that you still hold on to today?

SPEAKER_02 40:25

The first time we tried to pin up the first set of heifers that we wanted to work, um, and I had help coming, we couldn't get them caught. So I thought we had them ready to go, and um I said that's not gonna be a problem. We'll go down there and get them caught and we'll work them. Um I don't know if they since we was going down there to do something since they had some other people, but they were gone. There was no bringing them in. So the lesson learned there is start preparing days before, get them in a routine to be at a certain spot, start feeding them, start having extra people go out there and get used to it. Um so the first time I did try to get the the heifers worked and really try to learn, we didn't get past even getting them caught.

SPEAKER_01 41:23

Has there been a decision that you'd make differently now that you have more experience?

SPEAKER_02 41:30

Absolutely. Um which I've already mentioned, but quality over quantity. Um that wasn't even in what I was thinking when we first got into it and first said we bought, which we got good ones, don't get me wrong, but it was all about quantity. And that it's uh it's in my opinion, the long horns are a completely different game.

SPEAKER_01 42:00

When you face setbacks, whether it be something with the weather, the markets, maybe a sick animal, um, how do you turn those moments into learning instead of frustration?

SPEAKER_02 42:11

So take deep breaths. I mean, we all get frustrated, right? But try to understand what happened, how it happened, and why it happened. Um obviously you can't control the weather. The weather's coming and it's gonna do what it wants to do. There's nothing we can do about it. But trying to understand how it affected us and why it affected us that way, then the how is how come we let it affect us that way? And try to learn from it uh what can we do different to be better prepared? So it always goes back, in my opinion, from trying to be prepared and not tr not trying to react.

SPEAKER_01 42:58

The next quote from the book we've been focusing on is courage is not the absence of fear, but the mastery of it. Uh and then when we were preparing for today's podcast, you also listed a John Wayne quote quote as your favorite, which I feel like ties to it as well, which is Courage is being scared to death and we'll settle up anyway. There you go. Uh as a first generation rancher, what moment demanded the most courage from you so far?

SPEAKER_02 43:30

Was buying the first set of longhorns. Um, you know, am I buying the right ones? How are they gonna turn out? What what are what kind of calves are they gonna produce? Hell, I don't know what I'm doing. Um that was I was scared to death on that. Then everything after that, oh man, we gotta work these. When uh when are we supposed to work them? What kind of vaccines are we supposed to do? So all the responsibilities um to getting them delivered, all right, where am I gonna put them? So definitely the first purchase was something that that scared me to death because didn't really know what I was doing. So I was like, here we go. Saddle up anyways, it's coming, whether we like it or not.

SPEAKER_01 44:16

There you go. About to get cowboy, right?

SPEAKER_02 44:18

Right.

SPEAKER_01 44:20

Well, I think anyone that's that's been involved in ranching or with the longhorns realizes that dealing with the longhorns is a different kind of stress. It's not the same type of stress as a conference call or having to make a flight to get to a meeting, but there's definitely still some stress to it. How do you find yourself staying steady during those specific, you know, that specific type of stress with the herd or maybe with the land?

SPEAKER_02 44:45

Yeah, I'm very fortunate with a lot of the family support I got. The family, when I come home, a lot of stress, they enjoy what I do. Um so I have a really strong family that backs me up and they got my back. So um they can really help me decompress. But on the long days, the difficult days, driving out the ranch, you just gotta realize you're lucky. The scenery that we have at our ranch, the longhorns, the quality of the long horns, it's hard to let it get you too down and too stressful for too long. So just take a deep breath, enjoy up, enjoy the scenery, enjoy your family. And um, if that can't help you decompress, then I don't know, need to maybe think about something different.

SPEAKER_01 45:34

Another quote that stood out from Attila the Hun was wisdom comes from many places. And when we were preparing for the episode today, you know, you shared some of your favorite Westerns, you know, some of the quotes that drive you. Uh, but let's talk about some of the sources of inspiration that shape you that go along with wisdom. So outside of Attila the Hun and John Wayne, who were what inspires you as a leader?

SPEAKER_02 45:58

So as the leader part of that, that would be John, our owner, um, great leader. Um he delegates real well, which ties into Attila the Hun's leadership, but delegates and and leds you, you manage it, but it gives you clear direction. Um so you have a good understanding, you get to see the vision and you understand the the goal. Um, the inspiration. Again, that would be my family. They got my back, so and they they're excited on what I do. So they they keep me inspired on that for sure.

SPEAKER_01 46:35

Is there a person in your life whose example has shaped you how and shaped how you make the decisions specifically as they relate to the ranch?

SPEAKER_02 46:44

Yeah, there's one person in particular though, who make a decision. Don't be scared, make the decision. You know, if you make the wrong decision, make a better one next time. But you gotta make a decision. Um, and that'd be my wife. Uh sh's concise on her decision, she makes her decisions. You know, she owns it. You know, we all make a wrong decision, but learn from it and make a different decision next time.

SPEAKER_01 47:10

What gives you energy when ranch life gets heavy?

SPEAKER_02 47:15

You know, just realize what I'm doing. As a kid, I always thought about boy, I'd like to be on a ranch running cattle, doing construction. Well, I'm doing everything I ever thought of, so it's all worked out pretty well. So it all gives me something to be inspired every day I get up.

SPEAKER_01 47:38

How do you hit the reset button? So when you need a fresh perspective, uh some folks take a long drive through the pasture, other people pray, some folks listen to music. Uh, what's your reset button?

SPEAKER_02 47:50

So driving through the pastures does help. Going look at the cattle helps. That mile of Red River frontage you can drive on down that, that sure helps. But just slow down a little bit, take in what you where you're at at that moment in time and look around and realize, you know, it's slow down, take deep breath, reset, and go back at it.

SPEAKER_01 48:16

What's the best piece of advice someone ever gave you, whether it's related to the ranch or not?

SPEAKER_02 48:23

So uh really um another one is, and this was from Bob Loomis, but he said, slow down, it's faster. So being impatient, you know, I can be very impatient, so learning the patience of it. And really, if you slow down or be a lot more gentle with the longhorns, don't try to rush them into the shoe, just take your time, it's faster.

SPEAKER_01 48:51

It's true and true in a lot of aspects of life.

SPEAKER_02 48:54

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 48:57

Well, let's talk about your website a little bit here. Uh so we're gonna tie it to this quote from the book honor the past but march toward the future. Uh so you know, Attila respected tradition, but didn't want to be limited by it, and then which is a a mindset for today's ranchers for sure. So, what made you decide that it was time for Stark Ranch to invest in a professional website?

SPEAKER_02 49:20

We were ready. Um we already had the process going, and just in professional experience of everywhere, the website's the gateway to get yourself out there. It's it's the it's the opening door for people to really understand who you are, what you are, what you're doing, and how you do it. Um it's your open communications to everybody. Uh you can only talk to so many people personally, but your website can talk to a lot.

SPEAKER_01 49:55

Do you update the website or does someone on your team do that?

SPEAKER_02 49:59

I do. Very slow at it right now. Um I haven't mastered it, but uh I do the updates.

SPEAKER_01 50:06

Do you have a favorite part of the system so far, whether it be on the back end or or something on the front end that you like to change?

SPEAKER_02 50:15

Not yet. I'm still worried about crap, that's the wrong way to do it. So learning the process is I'm still much more in the learning and and trying not to mess something up or try to make sure I do it the right way. Then I'm still probably a few months out from being able to pick out the the favorite part of it.

SPEAKER_01 50:37

Well, one thing I really enjoy about your website is all of the beautiful photos of the the ranch. Uh, you know, you as our guest on here, you've mentioned a lot the aesthetics and the the beauty of it. But the pictures on your website do a great job. If if I would highly encourage folks to go not only look at the cattle, but also soak in some of the scenery pictures. They're they're very beautiful.

SPEAKER_02 50:59

Yes, they are very beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 51:02

What would you tell another rancher debating whether or not they need a website?

SPEAKER_02 51:07

It's not a debate. You need one. If you want to be successful in what you're doing with your business and you want people to understand what you're doing, you got to get a website.

SPEAKER_01 51:22

Well, since we're talking about a book uh written by a conqueror, let's talk a little bit about uh victories. Uh looking ahead, what victories do you hope that Stark Ranch will celebrate in the next five to ten years?

SPEAKER_02 51:34

You know, I thought about that quite a bit, but at the end of the day, I'd love to see SR or Stark all over the industry. Um, but we we very much want to be a value add to the industry. We want to help bring the industry in a positive direction. We're still way down here. We want to get up there, but um we'd like to see SR or Stark all over the industry. That means we're doing something right and we're doing it the right way.

SPEAKER_01 52:09

Well, is there any insight you have from the book or any questions that I haven't asked you that you would like to, you know, share with the listeners today before we close here?

SPEAKER_02 52:19

Yeah, uh, I would say one of the things that they say in the book is you gotta want to be in charge to be able to do it. So if you want to go out and be in charge of the herd or you want to do that, you gotta make sure you want to be in charge. Because if you don't want to, you're not gonna enjoy it.

SPEAKER_01 52:43

That's a great, a great point. Well, thank you so much, Jeremy, for walking us through Stark Ranch uh using the lessons of leadership secrets of Attila the Hun. It's not every day we get to connect fifth century leadership principles to modern uh cattle ranching and business management. Your story definitely shows how timeless those ideas really are. From knowing your mission and your terrain to choosing the right bloodlines, to planning for market shifts, to leading with both courage and clarity, you've given our listeners a view of ranching that blends old school grit and thoughtful strategic leadership. Conversations like this remind us that ranching isn't just about cattle, it's about the principles we live by, the land we steward, and the courage to saddle up even when the trail gets tough. To all of our listeners, until next time, remember to appreciate the pastures you roam and the traditions that make them special.