Back cover…Disney University Professional Development Programs…do you know how old this is?
Also a long time ago. Before Disney Institute was a place, the Seminars where held at and run by Disney University.
Before Disney Institute was a place, our programs were held at and run by Disney University.
Disney University was the original Disney Institute.
Few, if any, know this.
Why?
Because it’s not important.
But knowing it, and living through it, help me convince my audiences that it’s not the Magic that makes it work, it’s the work that makes it Magic.
The reason professional development left Disney University (DU) is that DU no longer had the room, nor staff, to train “outsiders”.
Coincidently, a new brainchild from Michael and Jane Eisner was the concept of “Smart Fun”.
In addition to Disney Adult Discoveries (we nicknamed them DAD Programs) and Personal Enrichment Programs (like animation), there was an opportunity to move DU Seminars to the new Disney Institute.
“I was all alone back then, I didn’t even have a Mouse.”
In his final years, “I only hope we never lose sight of one thing – that it was all started by a Mouse.”
Morale: Can you imagine Disney without a Mouse? There was a time. So go easy on yourself when you’re starting out. And keep moving forward. A path won’t reveal anything new if you stop or only use the same vicinity.
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This website is about our WORK. To ponder today’s post about our HQ, click here.
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Lofty indeed. By design. Screen shot from a November 2018 Keynote Speech Bob Chapek, Chairman of Disney Parks, delivered at the IAAPA in Orlando.
1. Jeff, what have been the keys to Disney’s success as a company?
A. Visionary Leadership. Obsessive and complete Customer focus. And the fact that we over-focus on the same things others under-focus on or ignore.
2. What of these aspects can be applied today to the Companies?
A. Everything. If you have great leaders with a clear, concise, and compelling vision of the future, and a committed workforce, nothing can stop you.
3. You hear the entrepreneurs say always that lack of money is the problem, is it really?
A. No. Necessity is the mother of invention. Don’t get me wrong, money is a wonderful tool, but your greatest entrepreneurial tools are vision, purpose, creativity, risk tolerance, fun, and determination.
4. What does Disney look for in human talent? What are the inevitable skills to undertake?
A. Let’s begin this answer with a baseline assumption that our job candidates are technically proficient. First and foremost, we prioritize attitude over aptitude. We want friendly, helpful people who delight in making others happy. We want creative people who thrive on taking intelligent risks. We also value personal initiative and people who can make work fun.
5. All people can be entrepreneurs, or are there those who were born for this and those who are not? Why?
A. From personal experience and countless observations of successful and unsuccessful entrepreneurs, to me the key success factor is what Steve Jobs describes as “the crazy ones, the misfits”. You have to be able to see what others can’t yet see. You have to want your vision to come true as much as you want your next breath. If not, quitting will eventually seem like a reasonable choice.
6. From your point of view what are the challenges of Colombia to undertake and manage your talent
A. No person, no company, and no Country can rise to a lofty and noble purpose without a vision of the future that is not only better than now, but much better than now. Most humans need and want to do something that is bigger than themselves. We all want to feel like our contributions make a difference. Figure out how to unleash this in people and Magic will happen.
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This website is about our WORK. To ponder today’s post about our HQ, click here.
If you want to stay on this site and read more posts from this Blog, click here.
