Small Scale Life Podcast

In today’s episode, The Slow Down Season, we explore how nature invites us to pause, reset, and realign our lives as we enter the quieter, colder months. This is the perfect episode for anyone feeling overwhelmed, stretched thin, or craving a more intentional, peaceful pace. In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why slowing down is essential for emotional and physical health • How nature’s rhythms can...

In this special Thanksgiving episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, we gather around the hearth — the ancient symbol of warmth, nourishment, and connection — to explore gratitude, community, and the lessons we learn from the changing seasons. Whether your “hearth” is a wood stove, kitchen table, fire pit, or simply a calm moment at the end of a long day, this episode is about returning to what m...

In today's Small Scale Life Live Stream and Podcast, I am going to discuss the Lessons from the Harvest for the 2025 Garden Season. Like the famous novel by Charles Dickens: "It was the best of times and it was the worst of times." Ok, that was pretty dramatic. We had a really great season for some vegetables, ginger and herbs,. At the same time, we had a tough time with other favorites like tomat...

Welcome to the first episode of the New and Improved Small Scale Life Podcast. In this episode, I'll talk about some of the things I am letting go and discussing what is coming next on the Small Scale Life Podcast. As we navigate some new waters, we'lll have to watch out for the rocks, branches, sandbars and deadheads...the water isn't always smooth in this Small Scale Life. We will explore these...

Tommy Cakes returns to restart the Small Scale Life Podcast! Tommy discusses what they have been up to since March: Starting a new business called Tommy Cakes (Bird) Seed LLC Gardening, Improving the shoreline, Feeding the birds, Taking some shorter trips Connecting with neighbors and, Dealing with the Government Shutdown. The government shutdown is concerning. 42 million Americans might lose acce...

In this 250th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and I talk about Mastering Speed in Business and Life. Speed....it can help and it can hinder. Act too quickly, and you can make costly mistakes. Act too slowly, and you can miss opportunities. The reality is that we live in a fast-paced world and have a ton of things going on in our lives. There is little time to stop and take a breath,...

In this 249th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and I will be talking about “How to Thrive in Slow Business Cycles.” This applies to more than business as well. Our lives are connected cycles of high activity, stress and constant action with cycles of lower activity, quiet, learning and rest. It is true: we need those lower activity cycles to rest and recharge. At the same time, we can...

In this 248th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and Tom are talking about the power of "no." "No" is the most powerful and shortest sentence in the English language. Sometimes we need to just say this powerful and short sentence to friends, family, acquaintances, coworkers, bosses, customers, etc. Adam and I are going to talk about setting boundaries and using the word no in business....

In this 247th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Tom and Adam discuss origins, tips and guidelines for the February No-Spend Challenge (or Frugal February Challenge) on Small Scale Life. Can you survive the No-Spend Challenge for 28 days? Unfortunately, this is the season....to pay the piper. December is usually expensive and gets us in trouble. The holidays bring us expenses with presents,...

In this 245th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Tom discusses the 24-Hour Fast Results and provides a Tommy Cakes Suet Update. Tom will also show off some of the feathered and furry friends visiting the feeders at The Landing this week including Sam the Squirrel, the Blue Jay Cabal, Elvis the Cardinal and Wanda and Woody (male and female pileated woodpeckers). Julie has been a world travele...

By now, most people have let the New Year's goals, initiatives, mantras and plans fall by the wayside. Change is hard, and it is easier to slide back into old programming and old habits, especially when you cannot SEE progress on the scale, in you bank account or in the way you feel. To make progress on goals, it helps to have an accountability partner. In this episode, Tom and Adam discuss progre...

Happy MLK Day! It is a day of new starts: it's still early in the New Year, the new Administration has peacefully taken power and there is a new cease fire in the Middle East. So far, so good (but really super cold! Several of us are planning to start new things in 2025. New workout plans, new diets, book clubs, neighborhood gatherings, garden plans, new businesses, new side hustles...the list is...

In this 243rd Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, your host Tommy Cakes takes the helm for a Just Tommy Cakes Show. Adam is sick, so Tom is going to take the time to dive into the following topics: The potential TikTok ban and how it could affect Small Scale Life Changes to the Small Scale Life website to make it more functional and organized Tommy's 2025 Garden Plans (big changes to the Smal...

In this 242nd Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and Tom put the icing on the cake by talking about 2024 Wins, Losses and Lessons Learned. It is an interesting blend of small business and gardening. Speaking of interesting blends, Tom shows off a new creation from the kitchen and takes a bite on the air! Catch ANT LIVE on the Small Scale Life YouTube Channel at 7:30 PM Central on Monday...

Happy Holidays! Merry Christmas, friends! Glad Jul! Happy Winter Solstice! In this 241st Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and I are going to be discussing how we are getting ready for 2025 and setting the stage for success. We have 9 days left of 2024, and then this chapter of our lives closes and becomes a memory. It has been an interesting year: we started this livestream, Adam atte...

In this 240th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and Tom discuss watching drones, surviving Christmas gatherings and closing out 2024. Besides the conspiracies and parody songs, Adam and Tom discuss 9 Tips for Surviving Christmas Gatherings, which Tom admits he will be putting into play this week! From drones flying around our county to our Christmas/Yule Plans to Closing our 2024, Adam...

In this 239th episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and I discuss attending small town tree lighting ceremonies and building new barrel garden planters. We also discuss the 2024 Acres USA Eco-Ag Conference including new trends in Regenerative Agriculture and homestead and small farm business ideas. Adam attended all four days of the conference, and he had a chance to attend presentations f...

In this 238th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, my friend Adam and I discuss how to cook a turkey including brining the turkey, spatchcocking the bird vs. cooking it whole and how we serve the turkey to family and guests. We discuss our favorite side dishes and a couple failures in our Thanksgiving dinners (homemade stuffing). This podcast will be connected to a much more in-depth guide on...

In this 237th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and Tom discuss 20 Simple Steps for a Better Holiday Season.  By using these 20 Simple Steps, we cannot guarantee that you will have a joyous and calm holiday season, but we can definitely say that you will be lined up for success since you are ready mentally and have prepared for what is coming. Gatherings and obligations wash over...

In this 236th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam Rick leads the way as he discusses how to find your first customer when launching a small business or even a podcast. To do this, Adam relates finding customers to fishing in a northern lake for big walleyes. It wasn't easy, but they ended up catching some massive fish after striking out for two days! The same thing happens in business......

Can you actually Manifest Your Future?  Do your dreams and goals seem to be out of reach?  For many of us, we never feel like we are good enough to achieve much of anything.  We sometimes feel like it takes all of our energy to get out of bed and drag ourselves to a J-O-B. But we are meant for so much more than that.  The world is a big, amazing place that is full of opportunit...

How do you find your passion? Do you even know what your passion is?  If you know what your passion is, are you doing something that taps into that internal fire that lights you up? Many of us have a skill, a talent, knowledge, experience, ability or product that we create or do without thinking about it. We have that secret something or interest that drives us and lights us up. Some of us ta...

Tonight’s show is titled: "Boredom: A Path to Mindfulness and Innovation.” When you are super busy, you don’t have time to let your mind wander and solve problems. You just don’t have capacity. The same can be said when you are holding on for dear life in Survival Mode. Having REGULAR downtime to dream, think and create is just what the doctor ordered, especially if you are stuck. Think about it:...

In this 232nd Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Adam and I are discussing Side Hustles and the Gig Economy.  It seems like there is not enough money for the month at times. One way to make resources stretch is through side hustles and the gig economy. It seems like there is not enough money for the month at times. One way to make resources stretch is through side hustles and the gig ec...

I stopped by Driftless Oaks Farm this week, and as I looked at the property, it hit me that it is a fast fading dream. I realized that I am turning the page and leaving the farm behind, and even though it sounds sad, this epiphany had to happen for me to move forward here at the Landing. In Episode 231, I discuss some observations, memories and epiphanies I had as I looked over the farmhouse, outb...