MANILA, Philippines – Veteran journalist and ANC’s ‘Beyond the Exchange’ host Rico Hizon traces his professional journey from the unlikely career path that led him to broadcasting — in the kitchen and behind the counters as a fast food crew. 

Hizon believes his professionalism and character were learned and built from his summer job at fast food chain McDonald’s Greenhills.

“The newsroom is totally different from a fast food service. But I believe that the values [we need to thrive] are the same,” Hizon said as he narrated his musings on his career path.

Starting from the bottom

As a fast food crew at 16, Hizon said his experience taught him the importance of starting from the bottom. From mopping floors to flipping burgers, he saw a chance to get to know the value of work.

“We have to really be honest, becoming your best self takes a lot of work, sacrifice, perseverance, starting from the bottom up,” Hizon said.

Being among the first four trainees in the then-newly opened third branch of the US fast food chain in the country, he realized that professionalism has to start somewhere — most of the time, from the ground up.

Hizon landed his first job at GMA Integrated News in 1988 fresh out of college. From there, he noticed the similarity from being a first-time crew and an entry-level production staff: both centered in learning the ropes and seeing the system from ground up.

“I always started from the bottom,” Hizon recalled as he enumerated his earliest tasks that included memorizing manuals and keeping up with training.

Developing a strong work ethic

Hizon emphasized how his experiences and learnings as a fast food crew have played a crucial role in developing his strong work ethic as a journalist, allowing him to navigate the fast-paced environment of newsrooms.

“I share with a lot of people my McDonald's pride, and how it really formed my personality at a young age — [from] university, and then becoming a news reporter, and then a local news anchor, and then eventually an international broadcast journalist,” the ANC host said.

Being in the industry for four decades now, he also adapted the importance of teamwork and communication in every aspect of operations, whether it be in relaying orders or delivering news to the audience.

“From the boxing to the burger station to the front counter and drive-thru, everything really has to be synchronized just like in the newsroom. So everything has to work. And just like in the newsroom, we may be all in front of the camera, but we are nothing, the anchors are nothing without the producers, without the editors, the cameramen, the researchers, everyone,” Hizon pointed pout.

For Hizon, everyone contributes a part that makes up a whole. His experiences in two different industries taught him that behind every seamless product is a team moving in harmony, with each role serving as an “important component.”

Growing to expand and learn

Hizon revealed that he was once an introverted student and before his anchoring stint, his experience as a fast food crew –- talking to and engaging with people -- was what brought him out of his shell.

He has expanded his career from taking fast food orders to sitting down and interviewing famous personalities in sports, entertainment, and business.

To young kids aiming to make it big someday, Hizon reminds, “For the youth, whether you're in a McDonald's crew shirt, whether you're in marketing, whether you're in sales, whether you're in–you know–writing a script or being a broadcaster…You just have to keep on learning. The learning never ends.”

“It just means showing up every day with integrity and humility and the drive to keep growing, whether I'm in a McDonald's crew shirt or behind a global news desk,” Hizon said when asked on work practices that helped him through the years.