The McDonald's Experiment

On Sunday April 27, I did a very unique task. Sometime around 6 pm, I stepped into a McDonald’s branch located on Kings Highway and East 16. For my managerial extra credit assignment, I was supposed to come to the cashier, and order a cheeseburger from the dollar menu, with four pickles inside, along with French fries without any salt. When I stepped inside McDonald’s, I was a little bit intimidated because I did not want to make a scene, with the place being as packed with people as it was. As I was waiting on the line, I was observing how fast the employees were working, and noticed that the manger was helping her employees by taking some orders. There was one line per three registers. When it was my turn to order, I stepped to the register where the manager was working. I asked her for my order, of a cheeseburger with four pickles and French fries with no salt. She took my order in a professional manner without double asking me what I said. She acted as if she gets these strange orders every single day when she is working. After I paid, I had to wait about 5 minutes for my fries. The manager put in a new batch of fries in the oil, since the already prepared fries were covered with salt. When I received my order I had not salt on my fries and had exactly four pickles in my cheeseburger. I was very impressed with how the manager handled the situation in a professional manner. I was expecting to get into an argument, demanding my four pickles, but I did not. This experiment proved the manager worthy of her position in that branch of McDonald’s.

Personality test

In our leadership/management diagnosis I came out to be an “I”. I was very glad that the test came out this way. Not because I think it is the best way to manage, but simply because I believe that it perfectly describes my personality. After hearing someone’s suggestion, if I do not fully agree with it, many times I would explain to him or her why it is wrong, in a calm and persistent manner. I am trying to be influential, while still proving and pushing my point. I do not think that I can become another type. I spend my whole life, being an “ID.” I do not believe that I can be very statistical, or creative. Sometimes I can be dominant, but in a managerial position, it is best to influence, you get your point across, and you help other people adapt to your point. I do not think that this test should be conducted prier to hiring someone. The professor mentioned how an “ID” or “DI” are best suitable for managers, and he himself was not one of the two. I strongly disagree with the fact that you can make your decision on hiring a person just by looking at this test. I am positive that there are great managers that are neither ID nor DI. This test would definitely help me with my personal intersections. Now I clearly know where I stand. Even though I was influencing people all along, I never knew it. This test just opened my eyes, and helped me understand what I was doing.

My Vision

Four years ago, if asked what were my ultimate goals, I would have sat scratching my head thinking of how to answer the question for hours. I did not know if there should be any perimeters or boarders set on such things as goals. I never wanted to go too far. I did not want people to take me as a dreamer rather than and actionist.
All of that stopped when I read Ted Turner’s article on success. He stated that a person who wishes to get anywhere in life, needs to set his goals so high that he would never reach them. Mr. Turner mentioned how people who set their goals low, end up achieving them and living the rest of their lives without any meaning. Taking Ted Turner’s advice I set my goals very high, so high that I would outgrow many people just by trying to reach them.
One of my goals is to create my own news network. I watch news everyday, and being informed of our surroundings and the world in general makes us all more versatile. I would want to create a news network that provides more information than its competitors. I would like to hire journalists who are not scared to take sides, over those who just report facts. My second goal is to become a CEO of a fortune 500 company. I believe that by achieving this status, I would know that every single day that I spent in school studying did not go to waist. In addition, having such a rank would put me in a position where I have to make crucial decisions, and take on responsibility that I so well desire. My third goal is to open up a set of hotels along with nightclubs all over the nation, and hopefully one day expand overseas. Since I was a little child I always wanted to leave my mark on the planet, and I think that this is one way I could do it.
With all of this said, my goals are obviously set higher than the typical standard of “realistic” goals. And that is how I wanted it. I am going to apply everything that I learned in school, plus everything that I will learn in the future to achieve these goals. I am going to take an extra year in school just to learn subjects that I was not required to take, just to make me a smarter person. I will work very hard to try to achieve these goals, and if I am not going to reach them, I am at least going to know that the journey was well worth it.