Hope you are enjoying this day before Thanksgiving! Don't have much time, so it's a good time to post the third installment from my...well...I don't know what it is..kind of a life story...but with off shoots into my thoughts on various subjects that come up.
I hope you enjoy your holiday, and today's post!
I hope you enjoy your holiday, and today's post!
My second stretch under the orange roof lasted for 6
years. Throughout that time, along with
gaining knowledge and experience in the industry, I got divorced, met my current
husband, and gained and lost the same twenty pounds about three times. In the summer of 1997, I realized I had to
make a change. New, modern restaurants
were popping up everywhere and the regulars who came in every day or a couple
times a week were not enough to sustain the business. Ownership changed and they completely
remodeled the building, ending the approximately 30-year tradition of the World
of 28 Flavors in Chambersburg, PA. My
then fiancé encouraged me to look for a management position, which I did. He had a book called Do What You Are[1]. I didn’t read the whole book, but I did the
activities that led me to the ridiculous conclusion that the perfect job for me
was teacher. It didn’t occur to me that I had been a teacher at several different
jobs, but because it was ‘training’, I didn’t think of it as teaching. I
decided the book was wrong and started scanning the want ads for a job.
After a positive
three-hour interview with the Director of Human resources, (I will call him
Pete) and a disappointing 1-hour interview with a District Manager, I was hired
as an entry level Assistant Manager for the quick service franchisee. One note about interviewing: the reason the
interview was disappointing was that after less than an hour, the DM got a
phone call and cut the interview short.
He did call later to apologize, but at the time, it made me feel like
the interview was not very important to him. Fast food was very different from
full serve, but I was happy for the opportunity and excited about gaining the
new experience.
After my initial
6-week training period, the opportunity arose to transfer to a new location
that was under construction. I jumped at
the opportunity. As one of the new
managers, I worked alongside an experienced General Manager to help train the
cashiers who they hired for the new restaurant.
As I sat in the unfinished dining room listening to the Training Manager
(We will refer to him as Robert) explain policies and procedures to the group,
the light came on. I had been waiting
for this moment. This was the moment
that I made that conscious decision! “I
want to do that!” I said to myself mentally pointing to the man leading the
orientation. “I want to be a trainer!”
Yes, as I said, I had conducted training at two different jobs, but it
was so informal. Now I knew this was for
me – what do you know; the book was right after all!
Several things
fell into place for me at that point. I
was in the right place at the right time.
When I said this to my dad he said, “And you were the right person.” He was always supportive and encouraging.
·
The company I was working for was heading into a big growth
spurt
·
I had a very supportive Fiancé who encouraged me to progress
in my career
·
Robert and Pete were each spending a lot of time at the new
store so I got to know them both and worked with them a great deal
Since the company
was growing, they recreated a position that they had done away with years
before. This position was Assistant Training Manager. They sent out an internal
memo letting current employees know the training position was opening up and
anyone could apply for the job. The memo
wasn't posted in the restaurant I was working in. The reason for this was that
the General Manager for whom I was working wanted the job. She believed that
she should get it and she didn’t want anyone else to know about it.
Pete spoke to me
at one point about goal setting. He told me that I should set some long and
short-term goals for myself. One day he
came to see me at work to discuss my goal setting. As he read my notes, he
asked why my goal for joining the training department was so far out – 5
years. I told him that I thought that
was realistic since I had only been with the company for five months.
“Have you seen
this?” he asked as he slid the memo across the table to me.
“No, I
haven’t.” I stated as I read the
posting.
“That’s probably
because your RGM wants the job for herself. She didn’t post it as she had been
instructed to do. The problem with that is that it is an entry-level position.
We only have a certain amount of money budgeted for the salary. It would be a
decrease in pay for her, but for you, it would be an increase. Isn’t this what
you want to do?”
“Yes,” I said.
“This is exactly what I want to do.”
I interviewed
with he and Robert and I got the promotion.
Needless to say, it wasn’t a very good situation between the RGM and me
when she found out that I was under consideration for the job and she
wasn’t.
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