Luthea has been with the MTB team for 6 years and serves as the General Manager of the Polson store location. It’s evident that Luthea’s inspiring story and consistent encouragement from her Area Coaches has shaped the way she leads her team. Every day, Luthea continues to challenge herself and not settle for anything less than the person she wants to be.
Q: Would you tell us your name, where you live and your position at MTB?
A: My name is Luthea Tryon, I live in Polson, Montana, and I'm the restaurant General Manager.
Q: If you could explain yourself in a couple of sentences, how would you do that?
A: I would say that I am open to other people's perspectives. I'm very receptive. I'm very caring. I like to believe that the way to get results is working through your team and your results will always follow.
Q: How did you get into this business and what was the moment you decided to do it?
A: I started with Taco Bell about five - six years ago. I had worked for Taco Bell previously when I was 18 or 19 years old, and then I left and I came back. But when I came back, I had a different mindset. I was homeless, I had two kids and my son was special need and I reconnected with my old Taco Bell boss and she was very kind and motivated. She helped me build a drive to get into upper management and I've been working here ever since.
Q: Tell me about MTB Management, Taco Bell and your role.
A: I've worked a lot of different places and a lot of different jobs, and I've never met a company that is so caring about their staff and so proactive to recognize their staff's accomplishments. Which is not really something that you find easily in a job these days. And then with Taco Bell as a whole, they do the exact same thing. They sent me down to Irvine, California for a week for the MARK, which is a self development kind of training program and they really make you look at what kind of person you are and who you want to be.
Q: What does a typical day look like for you in your role?
A: Well, I'd say in general, I work a lot of different shifts based off what the team needs from me. So as soon as I wake up I have developed a routine to force myself to just move. Usually that gets me going so that I don't really have time to actually think about staying in bed. Starting my day off positive brings the right energy to my team. So with my job role, it is consistently problem solving, no matter what the problem is. I strive to be proactive and I want to be better at this every day. And if I just get my mind straight and just kind of take it head on, it makes the day go a lot smoother. And then it also keeps me calm, which is really important in a leadership role.
Q: Was there anyone in particular that inspired you or encouraged you to become a general manager at MTB?
A: Yes. I would have to say my Area Coach, Peggy Hulsey. She definitely pushed me to be where I'm at. I feel like she saw something in me that I didn't see myself. I had a really hard time, I lacked a lot of confidence in myself, especially in my work. Simply put, she believed in me and was even careful with her word choice and how she approached me. Peggy pushed me in the beginning and then it just kept motivating me to be better. I've been assigned to a new Area coach, Vern Devereux and he too has given a lot of consistent encouragement and recognition to push me where I need to be.
Q: How would you define success for yourself? Both personally and as a professional?
A: What helps me is the belief that if you help get others what they want or what they need, then in the end, I will get what I need or what I want. I've been keeping that in my mind throughout these years, that if you start with your people, your results should follow. You don't even notice that everything is coming into line until years later. Consistency!
Q: What's been the most important skill that you've developed to be a good general manager?
A: Patience. A lot of patience, especially interacting with the wide range of personalities that each store has. I feel like each store has its own culture and everybody has their own personalities. And being able to adapt to other people's perspectives really helps you talk or coach or give feedback to every different person. It's crucial to be open minded that there's not just one right answer. You can get from point A to point B in many different ways. I think being adaptive as well is a really important skill to have.
Q: What does the future of Taco Bell look like in Western Montana?
A: Definitely a lot of growth, a lot of energy. We're relentless. We have a small handful of stores and out of our small handful of stores, half of those are Golden Bell Taco Bells; the top 100 in the nation! That says a lot about how an employee is being treated along with it. It proves the fact that if you take care of your staff, your results in turn, will follow.
Q: Lastly, if you won the lottery, what's the first thing you would do?
A: Stay quiet. I would stay quiet for obvious reasons, but I'd probably make a will and get a life insurance policy up and going. And then I've always wanted to build a Taco Bell House for homeless staff. And I want to open up a daycare center for employees. I figured if I do that, then my husband will take care of everything else on the personal side of things for us. But it's been reoccurring dream of mine is to help our staff, not just in work, but on a personal level. Obviously, there are regulations and requirements, but I've always wanted a Taco Bell daycare and a Taco Bell apartment housing complex. Because I was homeless myself, I know the struggle and being in a position of power, there's only so much I can do that doesn't cross the line. If we have those options available, then I think it would make it a lot easier on people. And then it would really say something about yourself and the company you work for.
Thank you for sharing part of your story with us, Luthea!
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Worst Place I have ever been to!