The Journey of McDonald's Refreshers

Dear friend,

This has been a very exciting week. My son Lincoln started working for McDonald's corporate as an advertising strategist, just over a year ago. He was on the breakfast team. Ironically, he didn't grow up eating McDonalds, so he and his friends had to go sample every breakfast item. About eight months ago he got moved to a special beverage team, that was small and focused.

They were launching new beverages, six of which come to the market this week. They soft launched this past week, so I've been buying one a day to taste them. I didn't have the McDonalds app before this. They are colorful, flavorful and tasty. Lincoln has kept me in the loop about how the entire product launch has transpired. It's been fascinating.

Because the kid is so gifted, they started utilizing him on the creative side, which is unusual for a strategist. He went to Austin for 11 days to oversee all the photography shoots. And then to Chile for another 11 days for all the video shoots. When I say "oversee" what I mean is, his sole responsibility was for how the drink itself looks. So in every picture in McDonalds, on social media, in a commercial, my son gave the final approval for the drink's appearance.

As you see them over these next few weeks and months, you can think to yourself "Good job, Lincoln." Of course I'm a raving proud dad. At his age to have that kind of opportunity, influence and visibility of work is thrilling. What if our work was on display for millions of people to see and evaluate? What visuals would encapsulate the daily effort we're putting forth to move our vision forward?

SEE ME

We live in a world where it seems everyone wants to be famous; Wants to be seen, heard and validated for their life experiences, point of view or simply making observations. If I stay on any one post too long the algorithm thinks I want more of that and then a deluge follows. It can be interesting, but incredibly myopic. The repetition reinforces bias and revisions reality.

End results are amazing! But man are they deceptive. Pursuing them, rarely produces them. You and I know the real magic lies behind the scenes. The daily consistent, persistent pursuit of excellence in every relationship, conversation, piece of work, self-growth and action produces a natural outcome. Attempting to achieve that while bypassing the down-and-dirty-discipline is a hollow offering.

MINDSHIFT

What if you exerted all your energies towards designing daily practices that simply produce excellence of character?

PROCESS

My wiring attunes to the end result. I like being a "vision guy." I like imagining a future and then pursuing it. I enjoy strategizing for achievement. I don't naturally love "process." But within every fiber of my being, I know that's the key to sustained success and meaningful forward progress. I go through cycles of effectively aligning with smart routines that produce powerful outcomes.

Both personally and professionally I know putting in the reps will increase my stamina, expand my thinking and deepen confidence. Whatever aspiration we are inclined to pursue, remaining true to the fundamentals is essential. Are you adept at seeing results in your life and attaching them to the consistencies or inconsistencies of your routines?

MINDSHIFT

What if you targeted one area of inconsistency this week and committed to remaining true with your focus & actions?

THE JOURNEY

To see the ad campaign and rollout of the refresher drinks is really something. Knowing the journey of how it got here, makes it even more impressive. Isn't that true for all of us? When we know each other's story, and the adversity that's been overcome, it makes each of us that much more inspiring. I hope you'll share some of your behind-the-scenes realities with those close to you.

Our journey is uniquely ours, yet amazingly has universal application. Humanity resonates with truth.

Let's pay attention to the patterns happening intentionally or accidentally. Our lives depend on it! Also, let's go buy a refresher drink at McDonalds this week, so my son gets to keep his job. Text me a picture and I'll forward it on to him. 🧋

SHIFTING

I hope this week you are mindful of your routines and commitments, so that what you hope to achieve, can be.

#ShiftAway