What surprised me the most about Ray Kroc and his story about how he successfully acquired the company McDonald's was his determination and ruthless ambition to make the franchise what it is today. Sadly, he was a very narcissistic and manipulative individual, and that is what made him a great entrepreneur. His success came from him manipulating the original McDonald brothers and turning their idea into his own concept. That is the part I found least attracting, however, from a utilitarian position, his method brought about the most overall "wellbeing". He encountered many adversity and failure due to his limitations with his original contract, however, he teamed up with the best people for the situation at hand in order to get out of the unfortunate position. The most respectable thing I would have to say about Ray Kroc was that he wasn't too narcissistic to understand and accept help when he knew he needed it.
The main competencies Ray Kroc demonstrated was persistence and determination
The part of the reading that was most confusing to me was the fact that he actually left his long term wife after she was so supportive of him through all the trials and tribulations he had to go through.
"The way that you did Dick and Mac, it was selfish and abusive in the end. If you could have done any differently, would you have and why?" I think this question is interesting because its directly addressing his character and how he felt in the end. Also, was there anything you would've said differently to your ex-wife through the divorce?
His opinion of hard work, I believe, was persistence and determination.
Hi Marco! I was considering reading the book about Ray Kroc because I have heard multiple people make comments about his personality. I find it extremely interesting how you mentioned that his narcissism helped to make him a better entrepreneur and I can't help but wonder if that would benefit all entrepreneurs or if it just worked in his scenario. Great post!
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ReplyDeleteHi Marco,
ReplyDeleteI didn't read this book personally but I found your opinions on the story interesting. McDonald's story of origin is one that is not very well known even though McDonald's is a worldwide phenomenon that every person is familiar with. I agree with you that Mr. Kroc was narcissistic and selfish with his business expansion but I also find this to be the more interesting part of the story. It would have been better if you included more details in some of your answers. Good job!