In order for me to graduate, I had to complete a senior capstone. I believe many people have to do this, but I’m not 100% sure. Anyways, because my bachelor’s degree is in Organizational Leadership, I had to do a project that centered around leading (who’d have thought?). So I chose to complete my project at my place of employment at the time – Olive Garden.
I had been working at Olive Garden on and off for about three years. Some stretches I was full-time and others I was part-time. I had gone to Olive Garden after Bob Evans, and as dramatic as it sounds, I was a little heart broken by good ‘ol BE. I had (thought) that I really wanted to be a manager and was very frustrated that Bob Evan’s did not want to promote me. It felt good to go to Olive Garden where they really invested in me and my goals.
I had the opportunity to work as a Certified Trainer, Service Professional, and other positions that allowed me to learn more about what I wanted to be. While it did not end up being a restaurant manager, I will forever be grateful for this job that gave me endless opportunities to try new things and discover more about myself.
I thought it would be fitting to do my college Capstone at Olive Garden. Luckily, my manager was on board and I had a great mentor that really guided me in that final piece of leadership I was looking for from Olive Garden. I had the opportunity to do a social science research project as the certified trainer and I got to work with my peers on recieving feedback about my leadership.
These tasks really allowed me to round out my four years as an Organizational Leadership student. It also solidified the idea that a leader does not have to be a title holder. It can be anyone in the building or company that others look up to and want to follow. This was an incredibly valuable lesson for me and made me feel more confident in myself and my professional abilities.
I spent a decent amount above being grateful for this job and I definitely am. However, all good things must come to an end – usually because the bad ends up outweighing the good. While I did develop professionally and personally, often times, development such as this comes from the bad times and not necessarily just the good times.
I don’t really want to delve too deep into the dramas of that job, but if you’re familiar at all with the restaurants and especially corporate restaurants, then I’m sure you can guess some of the bad.
Anyways, the point is though, my college capstone project was the final straw of what made me feel ready to move on from Olive Garden. Completing my undergrad and finally committing my time to getting into PT school, coupled with the ever growing issues I was having with working at the OG, I chose to move on.
To them, it will seem like there was this one issue that caused me to leave, but that is just not that case. As I learned in my classes, often times people don’t just quit their job over one thing, but instead, let the issues gain over time and eventually, the straw that breaks the camel’s back happens that the person quits. This was essentially what happened to me.
Now where does my capstone fit into this? My capstone really allowed me to leave Olive Garden with closure. While my interest in formal leadership (management) did not begin with OG, that is where it ended. The opportunities that Olive Garden gave me allowed me to explore management and find out that it was not for me. I had actually come to that conclusion way before I chose to quit.
I ended up staying as long as I did because I really wasn’t ready to leave. I realized though, in completing my capstone where I got to teach some final training classes and learn more about myself in a leadership capacity, it was the final piece that I needed to feel ready to move on.
And that’s what I did. I turned in my notice and found a much more casual job. This job was a fresh start where I could be a student that works the weekends instead of that girl that wanted to be a manager. I currently work my current job as only a server and I have rediscovered my passion for serving. I really enjoy working with the guests and I enjoy not feeling the pressure that I felt at Olive Garden.
It was definitely the end of an era for me. I was quite emotional and conflicted at first, but I am so glad for all that the company did for me and all that I learned, the good and the bad.
~ TEA
Thoughts, Experiences, Advice (TEA) 