Entrepreneur's Journal: Fundamental business lessons from McDonald's Ray Kroc

Patience: True, some businesses are overnight successes. But these are the exceptions. In the case of Kroc, he spent 30 years building experience in the restaurant business. Keep in mind that his last job was as a multimixer salesmen.

Not glamorous, huh?

But it was crucial. You see, the job allowed Kroc to visit thousands of restaurants across the industry. As a result, he became an expert and could see emerging trends (such as the start of the fast-food phenomenon).

Quality and Cleanliness: Yes, these are basic but vital. Kroc was fanatical about providing the best product and service. And, whenever he could, he would sweep the sidewalks and pick up the trash. One thing Kroc would say: "If you have time to lean, you have time to clean."

The Customer: Kroc was obsessed with customer service. In his book, he writes: "He has a narrow vision that allows him to see income only in terms of cash in his register. Income for me can appear in other ways; one of the nicest of them is a satisfied smile on the face of a customer. That's worth a lot, because it means that he's coming back and he'll probably bring a friend."

The Right People: While Kroc was a business genius, he still needed a strong team. And, he spent a lot of time finding the right people. According to him: "I believe that if you hire a man to do a job, you ought to get out of the way and let him do it. If you doubt his ability, you shouldn't have hired him in the first place."

Know the Competition: To stand out, you need to know your rivals. What is the pricing? The difference in quality? Brand?

Kroc said: "You can learn all you ever need to know about the competition's operation by looking in his garbage can. I am not above that, let me assure you, and more than once at two o'clock in the morning I have sorted through a competitor's garbage to see how many boxes of meat he'd used the day before, how many packages of buns and so forth."

Resources: While there are many books on the topic of sales, one of my favorites is Masters of Sales. This is a compilation of essays from many great sales pros, including Martha Stewart and Brian Tracy.

Tom Taulli provides a variety of financial services to business owners, such as business plans, cash flow management and taxes. You can reach him at taulli.com.