No one can succeed and realise their dream without putting in the hard yards. Find out what gives you the most satisfaction and go for it. BEV ADAMS

Bev Adams AM is passionate about breeding beef cattle and prides herself in running a premium herd of Charolais. Her 600 acre property, ‘Sans Tache’, is near Scone in the Upper Hunter Valley. Bev and husband Geoff moved to the property in 1972. Since Geoff’s death in 1982, Bev has been the sole manager of the property, employing casual contractors as required. Bev has been an active member of the Scone community and was the ABC Radio Rural Woman of the Year for NSW in 1995. The past four years of drought have challenged her commercial bull enterprise and personal resilience. She has had to make hard decisions, such as selling some of her prime stock, to ensure the farm survives, and she has no plans to retire or leave rural life. Bev was awarded an Order of Australia in 2001 for Services to Local Government, the Community and Conservation.

What gave you the motivation/inspiration to follow your dream?

My ambition was always to stay outside any city as I was happiest on a horse, mustering cattle. When the Brisbane Line went through during the Second World War, my mother and I were shunted down to Sydney town for safety. I was about 11 at the time and found I didn’t really fit city life. I lived in a tiny flat with my grandmother, mother and uncle so I very quickly became nostalgic for the space in the country.

At what point did you realise that your dream was actually possible and what was it that made you think you could really do it?

I met my husband when he was working as a vet in North Queensland, and as horses were his primary interest and Scone was the horse capital of Australia, we ended up here. We bought the property to conduct research into infertile mares. When Geoff was diagnosed with terminal kidney and heart problems, I took on Maths and Science teaching. The kids were educated, grown up and had left home. I realised that when the worst happened I would have to support myself. I wouldn’t have a farm income unless I got my act together.

My husband’s skills as a vet were integral to the running of the horse enterprise. As I didn’t have those skills needed to carry on his work, I expanded my cattle breeding. I’d been building up a herd in the background for some time while also helping with the horses. When I first bought the Charolais cattle they were considered avant-garde as their meat has a low fat content, and I saw this as a positive and the way of the future.

When you were a child, what did you want to ‘be’ when you grew up?

I wanted to be a politician or a swagman. I was in the Scone parade as a swagman one year and I think I made a pretty stunning swaggy! I did become President of the Scone Shire, was on the NSW Premier’s Council for Women and the NSW Rural Women’s Network State Advisory Committee, so I guess I fulfilled those political ambitions to some extent.

I also wanted to be a vet at one stage. I’d won a Commonwealth Scholarship to go to university but was talked out of Veterinary Science and started an Agricultural Science degree, which I didn’t complete. I had to leave uni when my father became ill and needed me back on the property.

How did your childhood influence you in later life?

I was an only child and grew up in Queensland. My grandfather had properties and I loved the life on the land. My father had a tremendous sense of humour and always found something funny, however desperate the situation. He had an inner resilience that I noted. He was also an entrepreneur and we moved north to set up a meatworks in Cairns in 1933. He started with a butcher shop killing floor, progressing to an abattoir. He was one of the first suppliers of chilled beef shipped to the UK. He chose Cairns because we’d be four days ahead of the Sydney ships. In those days all Australian meat had to go to England under the Thirty Year Agreement. We later lost the meatworks and had to move back to the Darling Downs to my grandfather’s property on the Condamine River and start over. But Dad did not give up.

Who are your role models?

At high school I had a very inspirational English teacher, Miss Rush, and I realised that all my teachers had worked hard to gain a degree to become teachers.

When I reflect now, I was also inspired by the women on the land who stayed behind and worked the farms while the war took their men away. These women were very efficient farmers and Australia’s productivity didn’t go down in spite of the drought of the ’40s. I realise now how incredible they were and that they had an influence on so many girls of my generation. I know what they did and it makes me realise that if they could do it, then I can do it too.

What does success mean to you?

Having good cattle and selling my bulls is a big measure of success. That’s all I ask from life. I don’t desire a lot of money — money is something you use to improve the farm. Money in the bank is nice but it’s hard to keep it there. I get worried when things don’t go to plan and this drought has been testing. However, my kangaroo Kiri Te Kanga (inspired by opera singer Kiri Te Kanawa) comes in for breakfast each morning and treats me as her mob, and I know the kangaroo species have existed for 80 million years in Australia, and they are still here, and I feel I can cope again.

What has been one of the biggest barriers you have had to face, what happened, and how did you overcome it?

The uncertainty of the weather and ensuring there is water in the well, feed for the cattle and keeping the garden alive are major challenges at the moment. In the 1982 drought I had to let the garden go and I may have to do it again this time. I do get stressed. I find listening to the dawn ABC radio program helps. I hear about other people’s problems, and this helps me to keep my own life in perspective. It will not be the end of the world if I have to sell all of my cattle but it would be very disastrous to my business.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years time? What is your vision for the future?

I’ll be 85. I would like to be on the farm still, with Kiri and some cattle. I’d like to have my daughter living closer so I wouldn’t have to do so much work. The dry years will have gone and hopefully I’ll be more worried about getting bogged than carting water.

What would you like to say to other women who may be just starting out on a ‘Daring to Dream’ journey?

Keep going. No one can succeed and realise their dream without putting in the hard yards. My motto has always been: ‘The harder I work the more luck I seem to have’. I’ve lived by that motto for years and it seems to work most times except in the drought, as working more doesn’t help much. But apart from that don’t be afraid of hard work if you really want to realise your dream. Nothing is done without some effort. Find out what gives you the most satisfaction and go for it. I have to review my plans from time to time, but despite all that has passed it has been a worthwhile journey that is never boring. I love doing what I am doing and, despite the hiccups, I can’t imagine not being on the farm.