How to Deal with Difficult People? Here’s the Secret Sauce
Lessons in civility learned from behind a fast-food counter
When I turned 16 I took my first job, at McDonald’s. I was a “counter girl” — meaning I took customers’ orders. These were the days before drive-thrus, so I got to talk to a lot of people face-to-face. I liked that a lot. However, I did deal with my share of challenging personalities.
To manage long lines during an intense lunch rush one day, I furiously took orders and worked the cash register, while “runners” worked behind me, bagging orders and delivering them to the customers.
A burly man stepped up to my register wearing a scowl and dingy overalls. Without waiting for a greeting, he barked, “A Big Mac, large fries, and a large Coke. And make sure there’s no special sauce. I hate that crap.” As trained, I noted the man’s request on a ticket, called out “special order,” and gave the ticket to a runner working behind me. The runner delivered the order to the guys running the grill.
I’d rung up several other customers when the man in overalls elbowed his way back to the front of my line, his face red with fury.
“I told you no special sauce!” he bellowed. Then, winding up like an Olympic shot putter, he heaved that sandwich right into my face.
