Tag: milestones

2021 Disney Keynote Speaker firsts

couple gazing into each other's eyes
These two share 66 years of Disney Service and Leadership.

2021 Disney Keynote Speaker firsts…this is an “intermission” in my unpacking last night’s intensely-painful event.

Deep breath.

Exhale.

And remember that writing is as cathartic a daily exercise as any other option.

Here goes a remarkably simple, uneventful story. Yet this story illustrates a dramatic leap in my artistry as a professional speaker. And it happened just four months ago. This is significant in the 23-year arch of a prolific speaking career.

Here goes:

Grateful that risk taking yields growth…

Let’s review the Disney Keynote Speaking firsts from 2021: 

Walked from home to Disney Convention Center, to speak.

1st Disney speech – in 2,000 speeches – delivered without slides.

1st time using conference A/V staff to role-play a story.

1st Disney Keynote delivery in jean shorts.

1st time in Walt Disney World’s 50-year history a Disney conference speaker walked from their house to speak at Disney.

Bonus 1st: 1st time in 23 years with a 16-month (Covid) public-speaking gap.

All firsts happened in one day. Would have been ridiculously easy to take no risks. Just do what you always do – what works – since 1999. Without multiple risks of failure on this day there’d be no growth. And because none of the risks failed, it was an epic growth day.

None of these firsts required a checklist. All of these firsts required an unexplored frontier.

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This website is about our WORK. To ponder today’s post about our HOME, click here.

Secret hack to improve your work

Screen capture from a participants (at this conference) social media feed.

The secret hack to improving your work?

The way to get better is to get better at getting better.

Never considered myself a storyteller. In fact i considered myself the opposite, a poor storyteller. Poor storytellers are best when they are silent.

One day, with Leslie Bays-Baker in a private, nine-executive multi-day engagement, i told the closing story and tied the story’s point to the thesis statement for the class’s entire four days.

After the group graduated and left the classroom on day four, Leslie shared, “I loved your personal story and how you connected it back to the content and the audience.”

Leslie’s feedback changed the course of my speaking career because for the first time, it felt as if i was a purposeful storyteller.

Have never looked backed from that defining moment.

Blogging every morning for 11 years was birthed out of the desire to become a better storyteller, and perhaps some day to become a master storyteller.

Why?

To dream, create, and inspire.

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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.

Change is in the air

Change is in the air.

Change is in the air.

Cheryl retires in one week, after 36 years at Disney.

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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.

No, this time i mean it!

Three cubs are rare. Three determined efforts to transform is rare too.

No, this time i really mean it!

jn

What?

Quit drinking.

Oh, and writing five daily, differently-themed blog posts for 100 consecutive days.

Both succeeded only after two failed attempts at, ” No, this time i really mean it!”

They say third time’s a charm.

True that.

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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.

Show notes

Jody Maberry took down 21 of the original 22 episodes and posted a placeholder episode as well. Everything changes in 14 days.

First three If Disney Ran Your Life show notes.

Official Season, Season 3.

  • Episode 1: Kuwait
  • Official launch – If Disney Ran Your Life
  • .think .differently about everything
  • Personal vibrancy
  • Balance is not a myth
  • Challenge: none
  • Episode 2: Mickey’s Retreat (WDW)
  • Personal vibrancy
  • High expectations
  • Metric for balance
  • Challenge: What is best metric to measure balance?
  • Episode 3: Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort
  • jeff’s meltdown
  • What this podcast is not
  • Podcast target audience
  • Challenge: none

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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.