#316: From Broke to a 200% Increase in Sales: The Mindset Shifts That Get You There

September 3, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Charlotte Smith opens this episode of the Profitable Mindset Podcast with a striking claim: after 13 years of coaching farmers, she has concluded that success is not limited by farming skills, location, competition, or any external factor—only by mindset about what is possible. She frames this as the single barrier between a farmer and profitability.

Smith shares her own background to ground the argument. She grew up on a fifth-generation commodity farm in St. Paul, Oregon, that went bankrupt in the 1980s. Because they raised wheat and grass seed, not food, the family experienced food scarcity despite living on hundreds of acres. Smith left farming thinking it was a "ridiculous way to make a living," but returned later for the lifestyle. She started raising raw milk, pork, chicken, and beef, selling direct from a farm store at prices often double what other farmers charged—and still selling out with a waitlist. Other farmers began asking how she did it, and she started teaching marketing from her home, eventually moving online over 13 years ago.

The real difference: mindset, not marketing skills

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What you'll learn

1 (00:00) **Episode Introduction and Host Background** - Charlotte Smith introduces herself and the podcast's mission to help farmers achieve profit, calm, and control.
2 (01:51) **The Core Thesis: Mindset Over Skill** - Charlotte argues that thinking patterns, not farming skills, are the primary barrier to profitability.
3 (02:41) **The 200% Sales Increase Claim** - Charlotte presents data from her 13 years of coaching, showing an average 200% sales increase for clients in their first year.
4 (03:52) **Charlotte's Personal Farming Story** - She recounts growing up on a commodity farm that went bankrupt in the 1980s, leading to food scarcity and a belief that farming was a "ridiculous way to make a living."
5 (06:47) **From Marketing to Mindset Coaching** - Charlotte describes the pivot from teaching marketing to adding mindset coaching after noticing a gap between learning and implementation.
6 (10:35) **The Science of Negative Default** - Charlotte explains that brains are biologically wired for negative thinking as a survival mechanism, so mindset work is an ongoing practice.
7 (13:33) **The Pricing Mindset That Worked** - Charlotte reveals the key thought that drove her success: charging a fair price based on expenses and time, and accepting that some customers won't buy.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Guests on this episode

Charlotte Smith

Show Notes

FREE Event: Farm Marketing Week - October 5th Sign up HERE

My dad's farm went bankrupt in the 80s. We lived on hundreds of acres and still had food scarcity.

After 13 years of coaching farmers, here's what I've learned: your success isn't limited by your location, your competition, or your website. It's limited by what you think is possible.

Farmers in my program average a 200% increase in sales their first year, and most earn back their investment within 90 days. They get the same training as everyone else. What changes is their thinking.

In this episode:

The simple thoughts that keep skilled farmers stuck
Why "I can't raise my prices" is a belief, not a fact
The one question that unlocks pricing confidence
How to kill overwhelm in your busiest season

Works for flowers, meat, milk, eggs, produce, fiber, and every direct to consumer farm.

Farm Marketing Week starts October 5th, join us at: charlottemsmith.com/masterclass