Two lessons in a cheeseburger

Give people what the asked for

Early in college I worked on a rough framing crew in Michigan. One of my jobs was the lunch run.

George was a roofer on our crew. Santa Claus beard. Always singing Oh Happy Days. His daughter was a student at MIT. He could hand-nail shingles faster than I could with a nail gun, and his body was wrecked from years of doing it. He kept working anyway.

One day he asked for a cheeseburger and a coffee with one sugar and one cream. McDonald's had a deal. A double cheeseburger for the same price as a single. More food, same money. Perfect. I got him the double.

He opened his lunch and was furious. I asked for a cheeseburger, he said. Told him it was a good deal and the same price. He said he didn't want a double cheeseburger. I said just take one of the patties out and it's a cheeseburger again.

He was not amused.

Two lessons in a cheeseburger.

First, when a man has a fixed idea of what he wants, he can't see the same order in different packaging.

Second, your version of better is not always his.

I've handed out my share of double cheeseburgers since then. Solutions nobody asked for. Improvements nobody wanted. In the OR. At home. Almost every time, the reaction was George's.

This week, before you upgrade something for someone, ask them first.

The good thing is, all you have to do is ask.

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