Reading Reflection No. 1

1.     The book I chose for the first reading reflection was “Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s” by Ray Kroc with Robert Anderson. What surprised me most from the book was that I always thought people exaggerated when they said entrepreneurs reach the lowest point in their life right before they peak, and that generalization pretty much applies to Ray Kroc. What I most admire about Ray Kroc is the fact he never really gives up and his work ethic. Many entrepreneurs work beyond the typical 40 hours a week and I really admire that resilience to work hard despite how tough things become. One thing I don’t admire about Kroc was that he wasn’t really committed to his marriage I guess, like he was married prior to meeting Joan but then once he fell in love with her, he wanted to divorce his first wife. Ray Kroc did face many adversities and failures, some of which were health problems and financial troubles. Kroc pretty much just pushed his way through and had to work even harder in order to compensate for his lost wages.

2.     Two competencies that Kroc demonstrated were persistence and the ability to see an opportunity.

3.     A part that confused me was the fact Kroc bought the San Diego Padres like I know he liked baseball but to the point, he buys an entire team?

4.     Two questions I would ask Ray Kroc would be: “Do you regret anything that you did as you grew McDonald’s to become one of the world’s largest fast-food corporations?” and “If you had to do it all over again would you do it?” The reason why I asked these questions is because I’m always interested in whether people liked their life choices or not.  

5.     I believe Kroc’s idea of hard work was never giving up despite all the challenges that you are facing. For example, despite all odds and all the conflicts in his life, Kroc saw an opportunity in the McDonald brothers’ restaurant and seized the opportunity he saw. And what resulted was a multi-billion dollar corporation.