Things I've Learned
From working at McDonald's
Assuming works in all situations : I've learned that when a customer says "I'd like a chicken snack wrap", you are to automatically assume that they want that with crispy chicken and ranch dressing on it. If they say they want a nugget meal, they want the six pack, not the ten. Customers do not tell you what they want; you're supposed to know.
You have to coach customers on how to order : If a customer says "I'd like a Big Mac, a medium fry and a medium coke", you have to reply with, "So you'd like the Big Mac meal with a coke". Cause from the moment they say they want a Big Mac, you are already ringing in just the Big Mac sandwich, and it takes a good minute to delete the order and start all over.
As much as you don't want to; keep your mouth shut : Whether a customer pisses you off, or a co-worker over steps their bounds; do not start anything with them. The manager always catches you.
The customer is always right -- even when they're wrong : And if they are in fact wrong, let the manager be the one to tell them so.
When in doubt, hand it out : Many times we weren't sure what order was at our window, but to keep everything moving, we hand out the bag in front of us anyway. A customer might get the wrong order, but at least we won't be getting yelled at for running the times up.
We should be trained to read minds : Again, the customers expect you to know what they want. They also expect you to know that they want ketchup in their bag without asking for it; therefore yelling at you when it's not in there.
Some people only realize that their order is wrong halfway through eating it : Many times customers bring back their food, or their receipt saying they got the wrong order, or the food was made wrong. When asked what they did with the other burger, they reply "I was hungry so I ate it anyway".
Doesn't matter if you made the mistake, if you're facing the customer, you're the one getting told off : If the grill messes up the burger, it is entirely your fault. Even if you told them the right way to make it.
It's always on the other side : Never ask if your food is coming; someone always yells it's on the other side. Even if both sides are yelling it.
It's always someone else's fault : The blame always switches hands. No one is ever at fault.
There are too many people trying to be the boss but not enough actually being the boss : Everyone tries to tell each other what to do. But when it comes to trying to solve a problem, no one wants to stand up.
Doesn't matter how many times you've heard it -- just smile and nod. : I don't know how many people have came through this winter saying "It's cold out here today". Or when we had a pot hole outside the drive thru window "There's a hole right here" "Did you know there's a hole there?" "Whoa, I just ran into this hole right here."
Teamwork is overrated when you can do it all yourself. : Why ask for someone to help, when you can do it ten times better on your own. Besides, if it's not done right, we know who to blame.
Last modified on June 11th 2009.