I grew up as the son of a McDonald’s owner. My father, Mike O’Brien, had the opportunity to become a franchisee at 48 years old. Dad served his country in World War II, he overcame a reading disability to graduate from college using the G.I. Bill and he tried every way he knew to become a successful businessman – and failed every time. It was not until an old high school acquaintance in Sioux City, Iowa called to ask if he wanted to partner up in a McDonald’s franchise that dad finally hit a home run. He moved his family South and opened up a store in Jacksonville, Arkansas on January 3, 1973. It became the first McDonald’s in the Southern United States to surpass the $1 million in annual sales milestone. It was once said that McDonald’s Entrepreneur Ray Kroc created “more millionaires than any other American in history.” My dad was one of them. McDonald’s is often credited with creating the franchising industry as we know it. In 2019, there were over…