We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Michelle Boerst. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Michelle below.
Hi Michelle, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.
When I’m looking at a tough situation, I always run a litany through my head of how things could be worse. “These bees we’re removing could be so much meaner.” “At least it’s not 108 degrees. ” At least it’s not raining.” With that type of thinking, things always look better and then when you’re in a good mood, the job at hand is always easier.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am a professional beekeeper and in January 2023, I received the highest certification available in beekeeping. I became the first (and only) Master Craftsman beekeeper in Texas through the Agrilife extension office of Texas A&M University. I’ve been beekeeping for 9 years and 7 of those years was spent studying for this certification.
We owned about 200 hives in North Texas and In October of this year we were thrilled to join the commercial beekeepers in our town of Denton, Honey Bees Unlimited.
While I’m sad to be closing down my business, I am very excited to start the Education division for Honey Bees Unlimited and share my skills and experience with many new beekeepers. It’s so exciting to watch new beekeepers eye light up as they see their first Queen bee!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The three things that really pushed me to new achievements in my career and my personal life are:
1. Never think you can’t do it. That statement has always helped me. I just don’t believe that something is NOT attainable. So then I just go out and start working on things.
2. Optimism. There’s no reason not to be happy about my job. If I don’t wake up wanting to play with bees, then I need to stop playing with bees. I truly enjoy life.
3.Treating people well. I firmly believe that this is the basis for a great life. At 56, I can look back and feel pride on how I’ve treated people.
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
Getting older is a serious challenge in beekeeping. There are times when we work 12 or 15 hour days and have to lift 100 boxes full of honey. As I get older, these tasks get harder and harder. One of the reasons I chose to get my Master Craftsman Certification was so that I could become an educator when the physical tasks in beekeeping became too hard to recover from the next morning. I was able to overcome that challenge by joining Honey Bees Unlimited and creating their education division. I won’t be doing as much in field work, however I’ll still have plenty of time to play with my sweet bees and share that passion with so many more aspiring beekeepers!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.honeybeesultd.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/burstingbees/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/honeybeesultd
- Linkedin: Michelle Boerst
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@honeybeeboerst
