Skills Learned During My Ko-Op Days

Still fifty years later, I experience events that cause me to connect back to things learned working at the Ko-Op. For example, today at a big box store (Costco), a worker pushed me out a shopping cart. I looked down and saw four or five used cupcake wrappers that were scattered inside. I started to gather them and another employee stepped in and took over from me.

One worker overlooked what needed to be done. My thoughts were that decades ago, I learned to look past the initial task (Provide a shopping cart, preferably a clean one) to see that something else was needed first. The second worker could see past their assigned role and took in the bigger ‘picture.’

What did I learn at the Ko-Op?

1) “Work both ways!” If you need to deliver a food order to a table or booth, look around to see what else can be done, before or as you return to your workstation (Condiments at the table low, anything needed at a nearby table).

2) Keep busy! It was OK to visit with customers, but stay alert to the work - - clean areas, prep for the next rush. Clean, clean, clean. And wash your hands, wash tables, clean food prep tools. Don't wait to be told what to do; look, see what needs to be done.

3) Work under pressure - we experienced rush periods that sometimes lasted a few hours. Remember Saturday high school band days? We first learned what was happening, as we saw yellow school buses turn off Lincoln Avenue onto campus. Hundreds of students would be on their own to find lunch and would line up out the door. We learned how to switch back and forth to tasks that needed to be done quickly.

4) Multitasking wasn’t even a word in those days, but we learned to think on our feet. Worked without a notepad or order sheet. We simply remembered food orders, prices of menu items, and totaled the orders in our head without an adding machine (Included the state sales tax).

5) Communicate with fellow workers (Teamwork) - what you are doing, what needs to be done, what’s next? 

Take a glass of ice water to every customer. As soon as customer(s) left a table, clear the dirty glasses, silverware, plates, clean the table and setup for next people.

Over the years, I’ve found many ways that I could use or adapt these same skills and strategies. Yesterday on our way to Mirror Lake and the western slope of the Uinta Mountains, Annette and I stopped in at a small restaurant in Kamas, UT. They were very busy; looked to be short handed a staff member or two. The person who took our orders delivered our meals and prepared our ticket but neglected tables needing cleared and cleaned around us. I’m sure it wasn’t their job, but as they picked up our credit card and headed back to the register, why not begin clearing a nearby table. The seating was needed; people were waiting (Work both ways).

For over a year, I was a student manager of first the Ko-Op and soon switched to the Short Stop. They were two different operations (I always preferred working at the Ko-Op).  At the Short Stop, I did the daily checkout of register(s), prepared bank deposits, and updated record keeping/bookkeeping. I completed weekly work schedules and handled payroll. I also prepared orders for food and drink items plus supplies, recorded income and paid bills. Also worked with Mize to gather and prepare yearly taxes - - sales tax and portions of his personal income.

After graduation, after the Ko-Op - - in my work career, I often supervised a small staff of adults and student workers working together to deliver equipment and services to academic faculty (Teachers, Professors, Administrators). There was no down time and lots of tasks and support were provided. The skills learned during my Ko-Op days were applied daily.