13A- Book Reviews

Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s, Ray Kroc

1)    I think one of the most surprising things I gleaned from this book was how out of date it is. I’m used to the McDonalds that have Wi-Fi and touch screens, but this book references dated subjects like housewives, which would never be used so easily these days. What I admire most about Ray Kroc is his unbelievable persistence. He was sick and still managed to be so unbelievably successful. I think my least favorite part is his lack of humility; but I realize that this is how he got so far and was so successful.

2)    Kroc was an incredibly competent businessman, and I think one of his best qualities was that he would make a plan and set a goal, and would do whatever he needed to until he met his goal. He got things done and that’s what made him so successful.

3)    Initially, I was very confused with some of the transitions in Kroc’s life prior to buying into the business. It was a strange concept to think that franchising was a new concept in his mind, and I had trouble reading the book and keeping that fact in mind, which makes his decision to start franchising so iconic. His jobs prior were random and not what I expected at all.

4)    I would ask Ray Kroc if he thinks humility is important in the business world, or if it is a killer and I would also ask him what his favorite menu item is today.

5)    I think Ray’s opinion of hard work is simply not taking no for an answer. His decisions won’t always benefit everyone but they will propel him forward. I have a hard time agreeing with him on that because I don’t like to step on other people, but I know that this is what makes so many businessmen so successful.  

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Carol Dweck

1)    I was almost refreshed to read about Carol Dweck’s opinion on the two mindsets that may or may not lead to happiness. I was surprised the most by the stark contrast between the fixed versus the growth mindset. Especially when she referenced the brain activity of the two, it made it seem as though the fixed mindset group was collectively just sitting there staring at a wall, which I know isn’t the case. I do admire Dweck’s in-depth explanations about specifically the psychology of her research (which I always find so interesting), but what I least admired was actually her style of explanation, in that she was very roundabout and took a long time to make a point.

2)    She was obviously very competent, not just in being a renowned professor but also her delivery made it easy to understand her argument about how impactful your mindset can be.

3)    One thing that confused me was when she discussed mindset and growth in business. She made it seem like changing the entire working force of a company is a completely doable task, but getting adults to think a different way is way different than doing that with small kids.

4)    If I had to ask Carol two questions, I’d ask her what made her start to seek the answer that inevitably led to all of this research and I would ask her if she thinks there are other effective ways to approach mindset without fixed or growth learning, but rather other types of learning.

5)    I think her opinion of hard work is approaching everything you do knowing that YOU are in control of the outcome to a certain extent, and mindset will determine how successful you are, which is an opinion I definitely share with her.