Lessons From The Drive Thru: Real Life Wisdom for Frontline Leaders
| Monica Rothgery, 2024
What’s It All About?
What does a Taco Bell drive-thru have to do with manufacturing? When it comes to connecting the top to the shop, a drive thru and a manufacturing floor actually have a lot in common! In her insightful book Lessons from the Drive-Thru: Real Life Wisdom for Frontline Leaders, speaker, author, and former Taco Bell manager Monica Rothgery shares valuable lessons that will apply whether you’re making truck frames or tacos.
In Lessons from the Drive-Thru, Monica shares her unique story, including her transition from military life to running a restaurant in the civilian world. It’s an engaging read filled with inspiring, vulnerable, and sometimes even comical stories about her time in the fast-food industry, where Monica initially struggled to lead her team. Through her stories, we see Monica’s journey as she becomes a more authentic leader, turns around her team’s mediocre results, and learns how to not just run a business, but run her team. Throughout the book, Monica draws these personal experiences to share lessons other leaders can use to connect with their teams, improve results, and lead with authenticity and vulnerability.
The book is 121 pages and includes simple chapter summaries. This makes it easy to read and digest. Monica respects her reader’s time and gets right to the point, which makes Lessons from the Drive-Thru a great choice for busy leaders.
Favorite Quote
“Servant leadership is not doing the team member’s job. Servant leadership is doing everything you can to support them, coach them, and celebrate them.”
Biggest Takeaway
Early on in her book, Monica shares a story about becoming frustrated with a staff member. This team member was tasked with washing the restaurant’s green onions, but failed to get the task adequately done. They’d say the onions were washed, but Monica would still find traces of dirt on them. Eventually, she became so frustrated that she’d start to jump in and clean the onions herself. Later, Monica, visited another staff member’s apartment, and quickly realized a common problem. She and the staff member have vastly different definitions of “clean.” After seeing the mess this person lived with, it was clear that “clean” mean something very different to them than it did to Monica. With curiosity, we need to ask, what does clean look like for you?
This story showcases the importance of curiosity and connection. It doesn’t matter if you’re cleaning onions or running a factory—take the time to have deeper conversations and ask questions. In particular, find out what “good” looks like to others on your team. Discuss expectations and have conversations to get aligned with your team, and you’ll all be able to work together to find better outcomes—or in Monica’s case, cleaner green onions!
Bonus Information
Want to hear more from Monica Rothgery? She’s an upcoming guest on the Mindfulness Manufacturing podcast, where she’ll share more great stories and lessons. Stay tuned to catch her episode!
Reviewed by: Trevor Blondeel, October 17, 2024
At Manufacturing Greatness, Trevor Blondeel works with manufacturers to connect the top to the shop. If you’re ready to improve your own organization, contact Trevor to learn how Manufacturing Greatness can help you build stronger leaders and develop a dynamic, high-performing workplace.