Ditch The Store

🌱 WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THE FIRST DITCH THE STORE CHALLENGE (and what's coming next!)
Hey everyone, CJ here. Last week we ran the very first Ditch the Store Challenge on Skool, and today I'm recapping how it went, what surprised me running it, and — the big news — where this goes from here.
In this episode:
What Skool actually is for anyone who's never heard of it, and why I like it a lot more than Facebook for building a genuine, supportive community
A personal update: two months into a keto/carnivore way of eating, the weight loss, and the mental clarity that's made a real difference to how much I get done
A farm update on Loki, our baby buck, as we start weaning him off the bottle
What running the challenge taught me — including the live-call feature on Skool I didn't even know existed until a member went looking for me
Why the challenge works just as well self-paced as it does live, and where to find the 180A–E mini-series if you haven't caught them yet
The community update: over 60 members on Skool and a combined email list of nearly 250
The big announcement: the 5 Day Ditch the Store Challenge isn't a one-off — it's going to run every month from here on, living permanently in a Skool classroom so you can do it whenever suits your life
Confirmed dates for the next two rounds:
19–23 October and
23–27 November
Why it's staying free-first rather than becoming a paid course, and what's coming next week (episode 182 — the Ditch the Store Method)
Missed last week's challenge, or couldn't make it work with your roster, your kids, or your farm? That's completely fine — there's always another one coming.
JOIN THE CHALLENGE (FREE) Skool community: https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about
Eddie Abbew Crew on Skool: https://www.skool.com/abbewcrew/about?ref=e31882b2226844c093df8c88e1ee1852 (yes it is an affiliate link, 🙏🏼)
GET THE BOOKS
Eggs Without Cartons: https://link.amazon/B09pwYzr6From Brooder to Plate: https://link.amazon/B080SYcCL
FOLLOW ALONG
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/ Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net
Not the Farmer's Wife: https://www.notthefarmerswife.com

DAY 5 of the 5-Day Ditch the Store Challenge: where do you go from here?
I'm CJ, and if you've made it to the final day — congratulations! Even if you've only landed two small changes out of the four categories, that's genuinely worth celebrating.
Today I'm recapping the big lessons from this week (progress over perfection, one change at a time, and building skills even before you "need" them) and talking about where to take this next: my free Skool community, the paid tiers if you want more, and my two books if you want to go deeper on backyard eggs or raising your own meat birds.
Day 5's own task is cleaning products — soap, spray and wipe, laundry powder, and gumption, all doable at home with far fewer chemicals than store-bought.
And I've got some news: I'll be running this 5-day challenge again next month, and next Thursday's episode is a full review of how this week went — plus a lovely story about a community member who turned my workbook into an app.
🔗 Join the free 5-Day Challenge community on Skool: https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about
🔗 Follow: Ditch the Store on Facebook & Instagram
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/
Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net

DAY 4 of the 5-Day Ditch the Store Challenge: building confidence one skill at a time.
I'm CJ, and today's episode is about something bigger than any one skill — how real confidence with homesteading actually gets built.
I'll tell you about growing up on 400 acres with parents who taught me to milk a cow, make our own butter and cheese, and grow our own food — skills I didn't realise weren't the norm until years later.
Today's message: don't try to learn everything at once. Pick one new skill a month — two at most — and actually get good at it before adding another.
I'll also touch on my two Amazon-published books for anyone wanting to go deeper on raising your own protein, and how to handle the people in your life who don't quite get why you'd want to do any of this yourself.
🔗 Books
Brooder to Plate - Kindle - https://link.amazon/B0fq89feL
Brooder to Plate - Paperback - https://link.amazon/B080SYcCL
Brooder to Plate - Aussie version https://link.amazon/B0dUhCyLC
Eggs Without Cartons - Kindle - https://link.amazon/B01mDroZD
Eggs Without Cartons - Paperback - https://link.amazon/B09pwYzr6

🔗 Join the free 5-Day Challenge community on Skool: https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about
🔗 Follow: Ditch the Store on Facebook & Instagram
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/
Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net

DAY 3 of the 5-Day Ditch the Store Challenge: the biggest mistake beginners make.
I'm CJ, and today I'm naming it straight up — the single biggest mistake I see when people start homesteading and ditching the store is trying to do too much, too soon, too quickly.
Bread, ketchup, BBQ sauce, yogurt, milking goats, chooks, fruit trees — all at once, all in one week. It never ends well, and I've been there myself.
Today's task is growing fruit, veg, or herbs — even if that's just one pot of parsley on a veranda, like mine (wild rabbits mean my herb garden lives in pots until it's established).
I'll also explain what Skool actually is for anyone who's heard me mention it but hasn't looked it up, and why picking ONE small thing per category — not five big ones — is the whole point of this challenge.

🔗 Join the free 5-Day Challenge community on Skool (videos stay live even after the official run): https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about
🔗 Follow: Ditch the Store on Facebook & Instagram
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/
Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net

DAY 2 of the 5-Day Ditch the Store Challenge: progress beats perfection.
I'm CJ, back with Day 2 — and today's for anyone whose Day 1 attempt didn't go perfectly. Spoiler: that's most of us, and it still counts.
Quick recap for anyone joining late (totally fine to jump in on Day 2), then straight into my "done beats none" philosophy, and the honest story of my first loaves of homemade bread — twenty in, some of them genuinely rock hard — and why that didn't stop me.
Today's task is pantry staples: bread, ketchup, mayo, BBQ sauce, stock — the everyday stuff quietly padding out your grocery bill. I'll also tell you about a poster that changed how I think about mistakes, and why I want to see your wins AND your flops posted in the Skool community.
🔗 Join the free 5-Day Challenge community on Skool: https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about
🔗 Follow:
Ditch the Store on Facebook & Instagram
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/
Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net