Creating Disney Magic

What do you do if you have a negative coworker? For the most part, I recommend you stay away from negative coworkers. There really is no upside to you spending time with someone like that. But, if this person is a friend or someone you are willing to help out, then step in and let them know they are damaging their reputation and career. Keep in mind, any negative culture or environment you spend t...

On this episode of Creating Disney Magic, I answer a listener question that may seem unique, but it is more common than you may think.  A listener told me she is 28 and people think she is a teenager. It creates a challenge at work because people think she is young and therefore inexperienced.  Although you may not have this problem of looking like a teenager, you do have something in common with...

Documenting HR issues is important for you as a leader and your organization as a whole.  When I was at Marriott, I learned how to coach, counsel, and discipline employees. Documenting HR issues was part of the training that stuck with me the rest of my career.  If you have any issue with an employee, you need to build a record of the history of the behavior in case it becomes a problem. Documenta...

There is one activity every leader should do every day, and it may not be what you think. In my book,  The Customer Rules, Rule #15 is Be Like a Bee. There is a story behind this rule or customer service.  A girl asked Walt Disney if he was involved in making the movies. Walt explained he was like a bee. He buzzed around the company looking for and spreading new ideas. What Walt told the young gir...

When you have free time, what do you do with it? Too many people let it get away without getting any value from it. But you can use free time to gain an advantage.  There are three ways to consider how you use free time; organizationally, at-work, and personally.  With organizational free time, you can take care of some of the small items you always wish you had time for.  You can train employees...

Jeff Noel joins us as a special guest on this episode of Creating Disney Magic.  Jeff is a 30 year Disney veteran. For the last 15 years of his Disney Career, Jeff taught at the Disney Institute.  Now, Jeff is a keynote speaker and helps businesses operate with a little more magic.  Jeff has his own podcast If Disney Ran Your Life. On his podcast, Jeff explains how if Disney ran your life, you wou...

Meeting a new team as a leader is your first chance to let people know what it is going to be like to work with you.  When I became the General Manager of a Marriott Hotel, I used the first 30 days to find out what questions people have.  Every day, I walked the hotel and met with every employee. First, at 6 am, I would walk every area of the hotel. Then again at 11 am. Finally, before I left at 5...

Whether you use a paper planner or a digital planner, you are going to have notes and other items you will need to keep that don't go into your planner.  It can be a challenge to keep all of your notes in order and organized so you have them when you need them.  In this episode of Creating Disney Magic, I offer some suggestions and ideas on how you can keep your notes and other vital information m...

On this special episode of Creating Disney Magic, Dan Cockerell, my son and former VP of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World joins me to talk about how to handle a crisis. Here are four steps to keep in mind while dealing with a crisis: Safety First.  Before anything else, the safety of employees, customers, and yourself comes before anything else. Deal with the Facts.  During a crisis people g...

You don't have to be a supervisor to influence positive change in your organization.  At Disney, there are hourly employees who have influence over decisions from management.  If you want to influence positive change you need to begin by having a spirit of serving.  If people trust you then you will gain some influence. When people want to work with you, you can have more influence on what happens...

Every business gets an unexpected rush of customers.  You have seen this either as a customer or in your own organization.  How often in these situations are you left wondering what is going on? Most of the time, this is what happens.  Too many customers leave staff unable to deal with the rush. The line builds up and customers get frustrated. Don't act like nothing is happening. The best thing yo...

Layoffs are not easy for anyone, no matter which side you are on. When I worked at Marriott in Philadelphia, I had to lay off 10% of our staff. It was the first time I had to do this. Every person I had to lay off I knew personally. It was heartbreaking for me to have to impact them and their families. Employees who are left behind also feel the pain. They have seen it happen and it erodes trust a...

Leadership is leadership no matter where you find it.  A podcast listener wrote in with a question about how leadership looks different in a school versus leadership in a business.  Good question with a simple answer. Leadership is leadership no matter where you find it. The words you use may be different, but leadership is the same in a school setting.  A Principal sets the standards and teachers...

"The biggest obstacle to thriving is arriving" - Dan Miller Once you accomplish something big, do you keep pushing to get better? Or do you settle in? You can do more than you are currently doing in your life. If you want to.  Don't try to be the best. Just try to be better every day.  The ability to push through obstacles and resistance is how you get ahead in life.  If you let something derail y...

We often fall in love with our own ideas.  When we have time and money invested in an idea, it becomes hard to walk away.  But if you have been doing it for a while and it is not working, it is probably not going to work.  Rethink how you are doing things. What do you have going on that is not working right now? I admit, guys tend to be stubborn about hanging onto ideas, even if they are no longer...

Strategic Planning does not mean creating a big complex plan.  The purpose of a strategic plan is simply to make business better. An effective strategic plan only has 3 elements: Customer, Employee, and the Bottom Line.  There are three questions you want to answer in your strategic plan; How can we make it better for guests?  How can we make it better for employees? How can we make more money? Si...

If employees are disorganized it can cause problems for you and other employees.  As a leader, you need to deal with it. Other people are watching and wondering why you are letting this problem continue.  Sit down with the disorganized and explain what you see and why what they are doing is disruptive. And figure out why it is happening.  Maybe they need more from you. Maybe you haven't said anyth...

One of the quickest ways to get ahead in your career is to take on more work and do a great job. When the opportunity arises, you should volunteer to take on more responsibility.  The people who get ahead in life are the ones who raise their hands when the boss needs someone to take on a project.  And, usually, it is the busiest person in the room who raises their hand.  This is because they have...

There are times when people of higher positions in an organization feel like they are above other positions.  Let me be blunt. Some people feel they are hot stuff and don't appreciate the employees who are really making the business operate.  During my career, I was treated as if I wasn't as good as others because I didn't have a college degree. But I know I am not unique. Women have dealt with tr...

When a new year begins, the only shift I make is getting out my January insert for my DayTimer.  A new year has no more importance than a new day.  Many people make the mistake of having a philosophical approach to a new year.  Have you thought to yourself, "well, it's a new year, now is the time to focus on ..." and here is where you might insert losing weight, spending time with family, or findi...

Many companies focus on results and don't care how you feel. You get a paycheck and they don't owe you anything else, they reason.  You don't have to put up with it.  If you have a job where you are not respected or appreciated, it is time to move on. Perform as good as you can at your current position while you look for a new job, but begin now looking for a new job. Don't stay in a job where you...

In your book, your phone number. What do you do with all the extra phone calls you get? Believe it or not, I don't get many phone calls. Sure, I get some spam calls. Even when I was the EVP of Disney World, I made myself available to any cast member. It wasn't often a cast member reached out. And today, not many people reach out. If someone calls me, I want to make sure they get in touch with me....

Being a parent is the most important leadership job in the world.  If you can't have hard discussions and make tough choices, don't become a leader. And definitely don't have kids.  Parenting can be hard. Especially when you are the parent of a teenager.  As a leader in your home, you have to keep talking to your teenager constantly. Even when they don't want to talk to you. And you have to model...

In this episode of Creating Disney Magic, we answer listener questions about careers and promotions. How should I dress on my first day at a new job? Before your first day, you should already have an idea of the culture of the company and the way people dress for work. On your first day, dress slightly better than the usual work appearance. It is better to show up a little overdressed than underdr...

When you have a big announcement to make, you know what people are going to ask. Go ahead and address the big issues upfront before they even have to bring it up.  If you want to be sure you cover all potential questions, get a team together. Talk about what questions, concerns, and issues people are going to have with the announcement. Come up with 5 or 6 questions you know people are going to ha...