A modern farmer on the pandemic: "It's about finding new and innovative ways to deal with this."

Here’s a question for you: What would you do to make your hobby your job?

Today's guest, Tom Deacon, is passionate about farming. Tom started his first farm out of the second bedroom of a Westchester apartment. It was a hobby. And a way to know more about what he and his family ate. Five years later, it has taken over his life—in great ways.

Tom still lives in Westchester. He and a small team run his farm, Fable, in a town called Ossining. He hasn't quit his day job: Tom produces trailers and promos for HBO, and he loves it. But nights and weekends and often, very early mornings are devoted to the farm.

Meanwhile, like so many small business owners, Tom has had to rethink this business as the pandemic has taken hold. The restaurants that he supplied closed last March, and many of them have yet to open. Some have closed permanently. The market on his farm didn't allow customers inside for months. How does a farm go virtual? Is that even a thing?

Tom’s proof that your passion can become a second career, a gratifying one. But it will require you to take initiative, and make mistakes along the way. And it will be a lot of work. You can listen to the episode here, and then please join us on LinkedIn to discuss it using the hashtag #HelloMonday.

Here are some highlights….

On the retooling the farm for customers during the pandemic: "It's great because we're providing people food in a safe way but I'd much rather see kids walk up to the fence and feed the chickens. I miss that sense of a place to go on Saturday mornings."

On starting a farm when he had never farmed: "I made a ton of mistakes along the way. You have to realize that failure is just a part of success. You're going to fail. Just as long as you learn from it, that's great. That means you're trying, you're motivated."

On having two jobs: "The food industry and the restaurant industry are two of the toughest industries to get into. I think the failure rate is pretty high. A huge part of it is just not being able to afford to only do one of them."

On having two very different careers: "It's a gift and a curse. I get to do two things that I love thoroughly. But I'm absolutely over-extended doing two full-time jobs."

On the challenges of reopening a small business in 2020: "On the one hand you're like, 'yeah, I would love it if a hundred people came." On the other hand, you're like, 'no, we have to, we have to have social distancing. We also don't want people waiting.'"

?? Office Hours

What's your side hustle? What's the passion project you'd leave your job for? Or, are you lucky enough to have transformed that passion into your career already? For this week's Office Hours, bring your best ideas. As usual, producer Sarah Storm and I will pour our coffees, and be waiting for your company. You can RSVP here in order to get a reminder.