Editorial: there's magic in that room

I’ll be honest, I didn’t have much time to look forward to the Women & Agriculture conference this year. The preceding weeks had been busy so, for a while there, the conference felt like another thing to do. But as soon as I arrived to the Lyrath Estate in Kilkenny and started meeting our readers, I remembered – there’s magic in this conference.

I began to relax during our succession workshop on Wednesday afternoon. This was a new edition to the conference, and we really had zero expectations around it.

Our attitude was ‘let’s give it a go and if it works, great’. With 600 women, the conference day itself is busy so the concept of this workshop was to keep it small to allow for an honest and open discussion. What followed was just that.

The conversation moved from tax inheritance to pre-nups, the green cert and right of residence. It also evolved into the importance of having the succession talk with family members, managing those relationships and dealing with different expectations. And there were plenty of laughs around how to get your other half off the farm to go golfing or take a holiday.

So, we started on a positive note and the rest of the conference flowed from there. Bryan Dobson wowed as he recounted some of the key historical moments he witnessed; women were nodding along with Maggie Molloy as she spoke about home improvements that can be made in country houses – without breaking the bank; and Rory O’Connell got quite the reaction – you’ve got to love that man’s passion for Irish butter.

Gerry Hussey’s talk on living your best life was motivating in its own right but when he got everyone onto their feet to practise their boxing moves and bring a sense of strength and energy to each day, well, it raised the roof.

However, the most standout part of the Women & Agriculture conference is the support and connection that is in a room of 600 women.

And I’ve realised that isn’t just about this year’s event.

That is a cumulative effect that has been building year after year. It’s the friendships that have formed and grown because of this conference, it is the welcome that is given to a woman who arrives on her own, it is the conversations and connections that take place over lunch. I feel it myself with so many women encouraging me throughout the day, saying, “it’s going great” or “we’re having a lovely time."

This comes about because of every woman in the room.

As a team, we put a huge amount of work into the agenda and making sure everything runs smoothly but we can’t create something intangible like an atmosphere. That only comes about when you have that magic combination of 600 supportive women – it’s there in every clap of the hands, in every nod of the head, in every laugh and when it happens, it’s a feeling so good that we start planning again – and already, I’m excited for next year.