13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

"Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's" by Ray Kroc with Robert Anderson

What surprised me the most:

What surprised me the most about how McDonald's came to be was how Ray Kroc came up in the world. I was surprised to read that he never received his high school diploma, Kroc dropped out his Sophomore year. (Kroc & Anderson, p. 13) You always hear the phrase that school isn't for everyone, and getting a proper education isn't always an indicator of success. Ray Kroc is the perfect example of that. School was boring to him, and he felt like he wasn't advancing while being there. (Kroc & Anderson, p. 13) He was more interested in being on the frontline where he could be part of the action. "Books bored" him. (Kroc & Anderson, p. 11) It surprised me to read that the person behind McDonald's widespread success wasn't someone with a business degree but someone with years of sales under their belt with a deep understanding of customers. 

What I admired the most:

Ray Kroc always made sure to think about his customers. It was a recurring theme throughout the biography from his time as a successful salesman to the founder of McDonald's. As a salesman, he would focus on the customer's needs and alter his pitch based on them. As Kroc stated, "No self-respecting pitcher throws the same way to every batter, and no self-respecting salesman makes the same pitch to every client." (Kroc & Anderson, p. 15) Kroc never forced sales on individuals when he knew that they were in financial trouble or they didn't require his products. Kroc held an appealing ideology. If Kroc couldn't sell a customer on his product by ensuring an increase in sales, he felt that he wasn't doing his job well. (Kroc & Anderson, p. 25) I admired this because salespeople get the reputation that they are willing to say anything to make a deal. It is refreshing to hear that Kroc didn't deceive or force his products on unwilling customers, even at his expense. 

What I admired least:

There were times when I was reading that I thought Kroc's ego got in the way. Kroc knew that he was skilled in many areas and successful, sometimes that knowledge led him to be extremely boastful. For example, during the Great Depression, Kroc worked for a paper cup company known as Lily-Tulip Cup Company. Kroc was the best salesman, he brought in many large accounts for the company, but due to depression, everyone in the company was taking a salary cut. He refused to make the cut and quit. He didn't tell his wife and continued to lie to her about having a job. He felt insulted at the fact that his company treats their best salesmen in such an "arbitrary fashion." (Kroc & Anderson, p. 39) While I understand that he brought in much money for the company and was a precious asset, we cannot ignore the problematic economic position many people were in. Kroc had a job with an income, and the pay cut was temporary. Lying to his wife and his child about his career also rubbed me the wrong way.

Adversity and failure:

When he was just married and starting up in the world, Kroc took several jobs to provide for his family. He worked at the paper cup company and a radio station. Kroc would get up at seven in the morning and would typically work until two in the morning with small breaks in between. (Kroc & Anderson, p. 21) He had to sacrifice time with his family to be successful and for them to live comfortably. The way he dealt with this was by always keeping a lookout for more promising opportunities.

Competencies:

Kroc was an excellent salesman. He had a way of knowing exactly what to say and do to make a sale. Even with people that were tough to crack, Kroc was persistent if he knew that he could help them with his products. He had a unique ability to sense opportunities and successes like that of McDonald's. Lastly, Kroc had a sixth sense when it came to hiring the right people for the job. He always seemed to know what people were right for what positions. Some examples include June Martino and Harry Sonneborn. These two worked tirelessly besides Kroc to ensure McDonald's success. (Kroc & Anderson, p. 77) 

The confusing section:

Kroc was extremely critical of the McDonald's brothers. He seemed to judge them quite harshly when they did not seem to share the same vision as he did. The McDonald's brothers were extremely comfortable with their restaurant's success and were not interested in scaling it as Kroc did. They were extremely reluctant to go along with Kroc's vision. (Kroc & Anderson, p. 7-8) Since they were on different pages from the very beginning, they caused problems for Kroc later on. They refused to help Kroc on several occasions. This caused Kroc to become bitter. I was confused at Kroc's reaction; he knew from the very beginning that they were not interested in the same vision as him. What did he expect from them? He knew that they were not on the same "wavelength." (Kroc & Anderson, p. 108)   

Questions:

1. If you could do the deal with the McDonald's brothers again, would you do it differently? 
• As mentioned previously, Kroc struggled with the brothers throughout his career. It would be interesting to hear if he would change anything knowing the struggle it brought later.
2. How were you so motivated to continue, even when others didn't believe in your vision? 
• There were times were even Kroc's first wife didn't believe in his ideas and methods, yet he persevered through the criticism. I wonder how he continued through it all without wavering.

Hard work:    

Kroc believed that hard work was the foundation behind the success of McDonald's. Kroc never seemed to slow down, he worked and sacrificed a lot. Even after he decided to step down from a leadership position, he continued to help McDonald's. I don't think there was a day where he wasn't working in some way.  

Citation:

Kroc, Ray, and Robert Anderson. Grinding It out: the Making of McDonald's. St. Martins Griffin, 2016.