Around 3 weeks ago I was sitting on the couch at church and overheard a young man say that he worked at Burger King as a "burger flipper". The man he was talking to said, "Well it's a job." I piped up and said, "There's nothing wrong with being a 'burger flipper', I worked at McDonald's for 5 years and loved it." The look I received wasn't very appreciative. :)
I've thought about that a lot since then. What, exactly, is so wrong with working at McDonald's or another fast food establishment? People look down on it because it's not a job that requires a degree, or the fact that they think "they hire anyone" or...well who knows.
I started working at McDonald's during my senior year of High School because I needed a way to pay for car insurance and gas. I thought I would work the year after I graduated and then go to school. Well, I was offered a management position and stuck with it. I became a shift manager, assistant manager, and finally store manager. I was able to go to 5 separate training classes that went over a multitude of subjects ranging from how to manage people to how to offer the best customer service.
I think everyone should experience a customer service related job at some point in their life, and here's why;
1. I learned how to
work hard. I cleaned toilets, mopped floors, emptied garbage's, dealt with rude customers, cleaned up after their messy kids and many, many other things.
2. I learned how to
handle difficult situations. I had people swear at me because we charged $0.10 for extra sauce, people that threw their sandwiches at me because we had forgotten to take the pickles off, I had employees who showed up late and didn't want to work as hard as everyone else.
3. I learned to be
respectful of others. I absolutely hated cleaning up after messy customers. I vowed after working at McDonald's that I would never make someone's job more difficult.
4. I learned that
my job doesn't revolve around me. It is not my employer's job to work around my schedule. I receive my schedule from work and plan other things around that.
5. I learned that
parent's need to cut the umbilical cord and let their teen's be responsible. Many times when I was a manager I would have to explain to a parent that I didn't employ them, I employ their child. I don't have to communicate with them or get their permission. Parent's should not make excuses for their children, especially once they hit their teens.
6. I learned to
focus and get the job done. If I am at work, I am there to work. I'm not there to socialize or loaf around. If I wanted to do that, I wouldn't have a job.
7. I learned to
take pride in what I accomplished. There is nothing wrong with looking at something you've done and being excited and wanting to share it with those close to you. This motivates and pushes people forward.
8. I learned to
look for the positive. Everyone has difficulties. What matters is how we handle it. Sometimes we don't have any control over what happens to us, but what we do have control over is our attitude and how we respond to our situation. Me being negative because I ran into traffic on my way to work is not going to change that fact, nor is it going to help anyone else around me be in a good mood.
9. I learned that
I have an impact. Whether it's on those around me or on my situation, I can make a difference.
10. I learned that
there is more to life than a paycheck. I quit McDonald's because I had reached my highest potential there. I needed to leave to move forward personally. Sometimes we have to make difficult decisions to better ourselves.
I believe these lessons can be learned from any job, but especially a food service or a retail position. Those tend to get some of the best and worst customers.
So the next time someone says they work at McDonald's, or Burger King, or WalMart, don't make them feel bad about it.
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