Farm life is easy, and you’ll make a bundle; you can take that to the bank.

Said no one, ever.

Are you stressed about lower commodity prices? Have slipping milk futures for 2016 brought you down? Are you a bit disappointed that the beef market finally came down from the soaring prices that made every producer feel as rich as Donald Trump?

Just when you feel like all the dominoes are going to line up perfectly, one falls and they all go down. I saw a recent post on social media of a disgruntled farm publication subscriber saying all the publications are telling farmers they have to rein in their spending because farm income is dropping. In these troubled times, she wanted to hear something positive, not negative.

Dwelling on the negative is easy and automatic for humans. Finding the positive is not, but it’s necessary if you want to continue to make a living on the farm. As income drops and you are choosing which bills to pay and which can wait, don’t get pulled into the pit of self-pity and hopelessness. Instead, look for other options and don’t be afraid of change.

I think fear can keep us holding our breath so long that we suffocate without even knowing it. Fear is powerful – but it doesn’t have to be. When you decide that fear has no place in your life and that instead you are going to start seeking solutions, you will find it’s easier than you thought.

You see, fear is crippling. It will keep you in its grip as long as you will let it. It will keep you from taking chances, making changes and even asking for help. It will make you worry about things that will probably never happen, keep you in the bondage of suffering as long as it can and will keep you from reaching the God-given potential that was breathed into you at birth.

Shove the muck and mire of your circumstances aside and look out at the horizon to see the possibilities that exist.

Allow yourself to peruse outside of your box. Look from right to left and see what else you can do, or the changes you need to make in order to be successful.

And then try something. Don’t let fear keep you from trying. Instead, shake those chains of fear and change what you’re doing.

I’ve always admired folks who aren’t afraid to try something different. And farmers are usually in that category because they’ve learned if they don’t try something new, they will sink into failure.

So, as we begin looking into the future and the uneasiness of 2016, take that blindfold of fear off, keep your eyes wide open and know that if you stumble, you can always get back up and try again. Learn from your mistakes, learn from others’ success and take your first step into your world of no fear.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Melissa Hart may write to her in care of this publication.