“I never considered my dreams wasted energy. They were invariably linked to some form of action. When I dreamed about having a lemonade stand, for example, it wasn’t long before I set up a lemonade stand.”
– Ray Krok (Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s)
I have no way of knowing what kind of personality that Ray Krok had. It is no secret that he had a difficult relationship with more than just the McDonald brothers. Time and time again, articles and interviews have been shared that cover the perspective of the McDonald brothers and their disgruntled heirs. I was excited to give Grinding It Out a try and get the story from the man so often accused of stealing the business.
Grinding It Out was written by Ray Krok and while it is mainly about the McDonald’s business, there was a lot more to the overall story. There was a lot of background from his life before McDonald’s and a lot more insight into his personal life while he struggled to turn the fast food restaurant into more than just another hole-in-the-wall burger joint.
There is no denying that deals were made, broken, backs stabbed, angry words exchanged, and head-butting that was a tad more extreme than a couple high school rivals duking it out. There was clearly a lot of bad blood and there were a lot of things that happened that were not ideal, but business hardly ever goes perfectly. I enjoyed Grinding It Out because it felt very authentic and real.
The problem with someone writing their own story is there is always an expectation that the author is going to dress it up. I have no doubt that it took place in the writing of this book as well. But with Grinding It Out, he addressed a lot of the problems and the mishaps that he was responsible for. Sure, he did a lot of finger pointing too, but he also owned up to having made certain mistakes or talking about things he might have done differently.
He was a dreamer who never stopped. Even when life was good enough, he didn’t just stop. Age was just another number and he refused to let it define him. He was addicted to the hustle that accompanied hard work and I admire that. Good enough was not good enough, when it could be better. He strove for excellence and never did anything halfway. Regardless of how you feel about the man, he was a fantastic businessman.
Journeyman's Legacy 