Comments on: 7 Important Lessons Freelance Writers Can Learn from Working in Fast Food

By: Yolander

Yolander — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 04:49:56 +0000

I would not have thought of fast food as an analogy for freelancing, but it is perfect!

By: EduBook.com

EduBook.com — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 18:07:21 +0000

Great article and great advice. The part about suggestive selling is a must. You can really make a lot of extra money if you stick to what works.

By: Kristen

Kristen — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 01:40:20 +0000

What a great post. And I wholeheartedly agree with your “the client is always right” sentiments.

What I have learned from past jobs:

1. The early bird catches the job.
I interned at a technology firm while in college. Although the day officially started at 8:30am, the company served breakfast at 8am. I always made sure to make it to breakfast; not only was it good (haha) but I made sure that the bosses saw that I was there early and ready to work. My eagerness paid off; the next summer I was invited back, most of my fellow interns weren’t.

2. If you don’t know the answer, find it…but don’t ACT like you don’t know the answer (bad english, I know).
At the same job, we had to work off-site and manage quite a few local temps to set up the company’s biggest meeting. Here I was, at 20 years old, managing 20+ local employees and having partners come up to me and ask questions. When one said, “I want to speak to the on-site supervisor.” and I showed up, he scoffed. But I had to keep my cool and PROVE that I was in charge.

3. The feet you step on today could be connected to the butt you kiss tomorrow.
I have gotten work from a past supervisor AND a past assistant of mine. You just never know.

By: Links: Love Edition 2009 | Meryl.net

Links: Love Edition 2009 | Meryl.net — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 17:37:12 +0000

[...] 7 Important Lessons Freelance Writers Can Learn from Working in Fast Food [...]

By: Jenn

Jenn — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 02:56:35 +0000

Deb,

I must admit that this advice translates well to writing. However, the inspiration that kept floating through my mind while I was reading this was “Thank God I am not working fast food anymore!” The threat of going back to that environment is a great weapon against writer’s block .

By: Louise

Louise — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 02:43:05 +0000

“…you’re still nothing without your clients.”
How sad that people believe this. I guess this attitude is what keeps some people writing articles for $5. If it were not for writers, many companies and even some industries (publishing, movies, TV) would not exist. My view is that writers and client have a symbiotic relationship rather than a parasitic one.

“They will always find new writers, maybe not as good, maybe better – but we might not find new clients.”
Again, such an attitude keeps people working at low-paying jobs and for unprofessional clients because of the fear or belief that there is nothing better out there. I got five new clients in October by just answering job ads. And if I had sent out queries or directly contacted local business I would have done a lot better. There is plenty of work available if you believe that there is.

By: Andy Hayes

Andy Hayes — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:27:57 +0000

Very very clever, Deb. While I’ve never been flipping flapjacks or grilling the greasy goods, I did work at a big electronics store. So I totally relate. The only thing I might add:

- You might not enjoy every aspect of your job. Just be sure to APPRECIATE everything that goes into making the final product. (Very appropriate to writers)

By: Deb

Deb — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:15:13 +0000

@Wess – While I do understand and appreciate your point, I will always maintain we need our customers more than they need us. They will always find new writers, maybe not as good, maybe better – but we might not find new clients.

So, while it’s ok for us to think the customer is wrong, and even offer them a little guidance when we can, I would never insinuate to them that they’re wrong. I would just offer a different “point of view.”

By: Wess Stewart

Wess Stewart — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:07:45 +0000

When I worked in fast food, I learned something too.

Whoever said ‘the customer is always right’ was usually either a customer that was wrong, or just plain stupid.

You just have to be smart enough to tell a customer that they are wrong without them actually knowing that you did…

*evil grin*

By: Deb

Deb — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 23:28:27 +0000

@Brad – In fast food you can at least east for free or a discount. In freelance writing, every now and then you eat your words but there’s still a good chance you’ll go hungry.

By: Brad

Brad — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 23:24:35 +0000

Great post. With one major problem….now I’m hungry

By: Deb

Deb — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 23:18:16 +0000

I have to say I learned some of my most important lessons about business from fast food and telemarketing. There’s a reason fast food works. We had to undergo films (yes, I graduated from Hamburger U and have the certificate to prove it!), training sessions, practice sessions – they didn’t just give us a silly hat and point us to the grill. So when James made his fast food analogy earlier, I couldn’t resist.

By: James Chartrand

James Chartrand — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 23:13:33 +0000

How to stay calm under pressure. (Believe me, no mean feat for a French-Canadian.) How to be POLITE while staying calm under pressure. Oh, and how to make a client always feel like he’s right (even when he’s wrong) and resolve his problem with a satisfactory solution.

How to hustle and beat the clock. That was a matter of pride. Having it done, ready to go and with a smile two seconds before the internal clock said, “Time’s up!” was a pleasure.

How to be patient. “I dunno… maybe I’ll have the… oh no, wait. You have a special? No. I don’t want the special. What do you want, Martha? Oh, that sounds good, I’ll have that…Oh no, wait-…”

How to show sympathy. I don’t know how many times people came up to the counter looking completely embarrassed while asking for something small that would make their meal better. It made me feel good to make them feel like they’d done the right thing by asking me.

How to keep a clean, tight ship. Trust me – there are many efficiencies that I learned from McDonald’s that I apply to my business.

How to clean a table. Cleaning a table is a science. They train you on this!! And my tables are nice and clean in three seconds flat, one zig-zag swipe, thank you very much.

I love this post. I’ll add more later, ha!