'...and it's sweet, sweet, Sweet Victory, yeah'... into Independence

"The private Victory must precede the Public Victory. You can't invert that process any more than you can harvest before you plant."

Once you have achieved your private victory of overcoming the first 3 Habits of Being Proactive, Beginning with the end in mind & putting first things first you have now achieved a private victory.

This means you have now transitioned from being dependant on others and your situations/circumstances to being independent. By achieving a higher sense of independence you have raised your trustworthiness as well as your confidence.

The private victory means that you can now 'make deposits rather than withdrawals' in your 'Emotional Bank Account'.

Your emotional bank account is Covey's metaphor for the amount of trust that exists in the relationships around you.

'Deposits' build and repair that trust, while 'withdrawals' break down and lessen the bond. You should always try to keep the ratio of deposits vs. withdrawals around 3-5:1.

Deposits are the following behaviours:

• seeking first to understand,
• showing kindness, courtesy & respect,
• keeping promises and being loyal to those absent,
• setting clear expectations & making apologies when needed,
• giving feedback (constructive criticism starting with 'I ...")
• and being able to forgive

Withdrawals are the following behaviours:

• assuming you understand,
• showing unkindness, discourtesy & disrespect,
• breaking your promises and having a disloyal bad mouth,
• creating unclear expectations,
• being too proud or arrogant,
• giving no feedback or evaluating someone's character (messages starting with 'you ...")
• and holding grudges

Anyone who has successfully achieved their first step to total effectiveness should be very proud of the transitions of trustworthiness and confidence that they have awakened. To keep your spirits high and hopefully I'd like to share with you a great story that Covey uses as an example of using your emotional bank account...

Why does Private Victory precede Public Victory? A Ghandi Story...
There was a six-year old boy living in the same Indian community as Mahatma Ghandi. This boy had a very strong sweet tooth. He couldn't resist sugar. Because he was diabetic, the sugar created painful boils all over his body.

His parents took him to the doctor, who said the boy must avoid all sweets; otherwise, the ailment would not go away. The parents nagged the boy every day to stop eating sugar, but this was a challenge the boy wasn't willing to overcome.

In desperation, the boy's mother came to Ghandi and asked if he could please convince her boy not to eat sweets. Ghandi said "Come back in 15 days and I';; speak to him then." So the mother came back in 15 days. Ghandi took her son aside and spoke to him for a few minutes. The boy went home and immediately gave up sweets.

The mother was puzzled. She asked Ghandi later, "why did you ask us to come back after 15 days? And what miracle did you perform to get my son to quit eating sweets?"
Ghandi replied that it wasn't a miracle. "When your boy first came to me, I too had been eating sugar." He had told the boy that he couldn't ask him to do something that he, Ghandi, wasn't willing to do himself.

"Who you are speaks so loudly I cant hear what you're saying." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Please feel free to comment about this story or your own achievements in Private and Independent Victories.

Up Next: 'Get in the Habit' of Thinking Win-Win
 

13 'Rights' & 'Wrongs' of Unleashing the Villains

A week ago I had the chance to attend Hades' Unleash the Villains - Friday the 13th party at Walt Disney World's Hollywood Studios. The event had been advertised far and wide for weeks and finally the day came upon us. I decided to document my experience for those who didn't get a chance to attend, and for future reference of the things that went great and gruesome...



Here are two samples of the first show and the 'Villainy in the Sky' fireworks that went on during the party...

 

You cant spell Culture without ... Organization?

The third assignment in our Intercultural Communications class is to write a short report, answering several questions about our perspective on Disney's organizational culture.

'Organizational Culture' values,  behaviors  expectations, experiences, philosophy, and values that embody a business or company; and is expressed in its self-image, inner workings, interactions with the outside world, and future expectations.

For your reading pleasure I have posted it here, although I've made some alterations due to confidentiality of my other cast members :)

1) How would you describe the organizational culture of Walt Disney World?

They are very strategic and methodical in their scheduling and production in order to service their guests fully. They care about their workers and guests equally in safety and enthusiasm. They are the leading entertainment business in today’s society. Disney had successfully made a business out of selling entertainment in all forms possible to its audiences.

2) Discuss some of the strengths and weaknesses of Disney’s organizational culture from your point of view.

The company is very committed to the safety of its employees and guests. They want to maintain as much magical show qualities as possible without harming the integrity of anyone involved. They are very engaged within their community and try to be the most diverse company possible. They make sure that all cultures are represented equally within their cast and shows and all people have a chance to work there.

3) Would you say that Disney is able to attract good talent? If so, is that because Disney has a great organizational culture?

 Disney has a reputation of being the best entertainment business. They are also one of the widest accepting businesses ethnically and diversely. This brings a lot of eager talent and people who dream of working for such a high-standards company. You hear minimal scandals or mishaps from the company which gives it a very positive appeal to everyone.

4) Does Disney do things that would enable it to retain talent?

They continually rotate you through all the job roles and locations that you know in order to keep your skills retained. If you request to be trained in another location or role they are also swift to accommodate your requests.

5) Does Disney do things that keep its employees feel engaged when they’re at work? Do they feel engaged?

Disney lets you be part of the magic. You can participate in testing attractions when the parks are closed, they have special times when cast members can visit the park as ‘employee appreciation,’ they have specific appreciation parties once or twice a month, you can enter contests and surveys online to win a multitude of prizes. You have a choice whether you want to work with the guests or cast members or both. You can engage with guests directly and give them magical moments every day or you can engage with your fellow cast and help me a part of making those moments with them.

6) Does Disney have a strong organizational culture which is instantly known by cast members when they begin working at Disney? Does Disney’s organizational culture energize you?

Disney does a great job of letting their core values and expectations be known as soon as you arrive or start working. You go through training, presentations, traditions classes, and are continuously encouraged to provide examples even after you start working and throughout your time there. When you are applauded for special work you have done it is specifically for an example of one of their core values so you are again reminded of what they are. Everything they do or teach is upbeat, up to date and they try to make it seem as interesting and fun as possible.

7) Do you think that you’re able to contribute to Disney’s success in meaningful ways? Are their avenues where you can express your ideas about making Disney a better company?

Disney gives you the chance to contribute to the company. There are surveys being performed constantly in person throughout the parks and online. There are comment boards online that you can put in ideas or thoughts and your managers are always very welcoming with an ‘open door’ policy in helping find a solution or compromise to your problems.

8) Is Disney culture different for the CEO, the Manager, or the full time staff person than it is for you?

I don’t believe there is a difference between job positions when it comes to Disney’s organizational culture. Every cast member has the same expectations in performance, courtesy, efficiency and safety… etc. that all other cast members have no matter what position or location they are in. We all look out for each other and we all work hard to achieve our goals. Disney fully understands that without its cast it cannot perform properly and makes sure that its higher up staff remember that they were once littler and without the littler staff they wouldn’t have an efficient job either. Most of the higher up staff are very friendly and talkative and even help you with your tasks when they really don’t have to.

Details on Disney! A look into Creative Costuming

I've tried to keep friends and family in the loop while on Disney USA Adventures.

So far I've explained some conundrums & concerns, working backstage at a show and what your daily schedule would probably look like - but it's still hard to imagine how working for 'the big mouse' could really be without any kind of visual help.

My latest 'Details on Disney' video is a more visual explanation of costuming life. An example of how we get Mickey mouse and his friends ready for their busy days visiting guests in the parks and what we do before and after.

Creative costumers are always busy; we have pants to mend, rips and tears to sew, buttons to find, feathers to brush and fur to groom. We have to make sure everyone takes their baths and look their best for the guests.



Click here to go to the video!

And of course every park has it's own crew of costumers because every park has a different theme. Hollywood studios is all about the glamour and performance, therefore everyone must look stunning! Animal Kingdom is all about adventure so you wouldn't see Goofy or Mickey without their safari hats or backpacks for example.

It's not always just laundry and hygiene, sometimes Mickey and his friends are running late or transportation gets mixed up and we have to help get them to where they need to be. All in all costuming is a fantasmic and fast-paced job and someone has to do it!

As always PLEASE feel free to leave comments here or on my videos about anything else you would like me to answer during our 6 month stay in the program. As always I will be posting more blogs and videos during my stay in America, so please continue to visit :)

'Get in the Habit' of putting First things First, Habit #3

The third habit has to do with integrity & execution; the principle being that effectiveness requires the integrity to act on your priorities with discipline & willpower.

The paradigm to think of is not to put urgent things first but to put important things first instead. Your behaviour should be to focus on top priorities, eliminating the unimportant. Also to plan your routines and schedules daily and weekly. This results in increased organization and productivity. A more balances life with fewer crises and a peace of mind. You also earn a reputation of always following-through with your decisions and plans.

"Where you're headed is more important than how fast you're getting there."

The way to put first things first is to think of a compass and a clock. When balancing your life decisions.

The compass represents your effectiveness, relationships and important things - how you manage your time, and with what?

The clock represents your efficiency, scheduling and things you think are urgent - what you feel matters the most and should be used with the compass.

"I watched the Indy 500, and I was thinking that if they left earlier, they wouldn't have to go so fast." - Steven Wright

The most important aspect I've learned from this habit is how to prioritize. Stephen Covey developed a Time Matrix to help us categorize our daily tasks and emergencies to let us realize how important or unimportant they really are.

There are 4 quadrants of the time matrix that you can prioritize your decisions by... they are chosen by things that are urgent or non & important or not. These quadrants are: Necessity, Effectiveness, Deception & Waste/Excess.

You should try to live your life 'north of the line' taking care of quadrant 1 and 2 priorities first before tackling any from quadrant 3 or 4. Do first things first and the little things will fill in the rest.

Quadrant One are things that should be taken care of first and foremost. These are things like homework, studying for tests and immediate emergencies.

Quadrant Two are second-hand things that can be dealt with but after all your emergencies are taken care of. Things like planning and preparing events or projects, changing the oil in your car or taking the time to clarify your values such as we did in Habit #2.

Quadrant Three can be defined as other's priorities/expectations on you that still must be met. Things like minor assignments or helping to solves other's issues.

Quadrant Four is the final level of tasks that should always be completed last. These are things like surfing the web with no purpose (like on Facebook or Instagram,) watching TV or playing videogames.

Think about all of the things you've done recently; over the past week or so... What are the chronic quadrant Three activities in your personal or work life right now? What are the things you should be keeping in quadrant One or Two but have replaced with quadrant Four?

Please leave any comments with your thoughts, or if you have any tips on how to reduce quadrant Three and Four from taking over.

 

Up next: '...and it's sweet, sweet, Sweet Victory, yeah'... into Independence

"In every job that must be done there is an element of fun" - Mary Poppins

As you all know it is hard to journal my Disney World adventures since my job is backstage where all the magic and Tinkerbell pixie dust is. But I did want to share with you an idea of the working atmosphere at Fantasmic!

For those who don't know it is a night show; depending on the time of season it can run 1-3 times a night. But because it is a night show outdoors the weather isn't always kind to us.


If its storming too bad then we Mickey and his friends cannot come out to perform, we wouldn't want Brier Bear to slip and fall on Pinocchio would we? (He's a little heavy of a bear...)
If there is lightning in the area then we also cannot perform the show, we have to think of the safety of not only our magical friends but of our guests in the audience and working at the concession stands too.
Plus then everyone gets wet and we have to use twice as many blow dryers and towels to get fur wet, feather dry, dresses dry-cleaned and shoes aired out.

So we have a silly little tradition at Fantasmic! that whenever a Storm Warning is called, we perform a 'turtle circumstance' in order to please Hercules and his other fellow demi-gods enough to either make the storm stop or make it so bad that the show will be cancelled due to safety concerns.

These circumstances are not literally.. but visually. It's a way to bring us all together as a family (and make fun of ourselves in the process.) It doesn't matter if your great or gruesome at drawing or sketching - you can be very artistic or draw stick figures. All that matters is if you draw in one way or another a turtle having an 'unfortunate circumstance' with a Disney villain.

The way it works is if you draw a circumstance and it works, your picture gets posted on the 'Wall of Turtle' and if it doesn't than we recycle the paper and try again another day (He may not be Disney but we don't want the Lorax coming and yelling at us for harming the environment after all.)

So because I cannot take backstage working pictures for your viewing pleasure, I decided to show you a recent turtle circumstance I drew last week. I ran out of villain ideas so unfortunately it's Chip and Dale who accidentally dropped their peanut stash on a poor turtle. Needless to say it didn't work and the turtle after having a long nap and some Advil got up and forgave Chip and Dale for the accident :)

Can you Position... your Brand now? (Part Two)

You've waited patiently now here it is! For those of you looking for a more detailed version of my tips on how to position your personal brand I've got it right here!

Representing your own brand (or even a position or brand of a company your employed with) is hard work. But it does pay off in the end! If you strategize you can make it fun instead of daunting and most things you never have to repeat or redo for a long time anyways - only keeping up to date.

So let's get started.. this blog will follow along with my Personal Branding video so I can explain the examples in more detail. And again if you're looking for tips on how to represent your company or job position brand then skip until the next post: There's nothing wrong with Tradition... when it come's to Media!

1 - DISCOVERING YOUR NICHE..

In reference to a niche market; which is a very targeted specific minority of consumers, products or services that you want to focus on.
For example, everyone uses mass Laundromats but how many of us specifically go to dry cleaners? Dry cleaners are in a niche market because they market to a specific kind of consumer (the kind that need their clothing handled with care and special attention.)

When looking for your niche you want to focus on the things that make you an individual (or individual company) in comparison to others or any competition.
This can be things like...
- Creative or Work skills (are you great at graphic design, or cinematography?)
- School Major/Minor
- Personality traits (are you crazy about copywriting and creativity?)
- current Job position
- Hobbies (if you love to plan events as a hobby why not turn it into a business?)

I am a very versatile and creative person so I wanted to showcase as many different skills as possible. I picked 8-10 words that describe the most important skills I feel I need to showcase to any consumers or potential employers.

You will always see these main skills in my resume, on my business cards, in my email and letter salutations and on my logos. Whatever niche you pick needs to embody who you are.

2 - CREATE YOUR VISUALS...

Unless you are already representing a company brand then you have to think of a logo that will represent your niche. Your logo should be a symbol that is easy to understand and remember, it should catch consumer's attention and if possible be humorous (it's always easier to remember a funny commercial you watched on TV right?)
If your opening an event planning business, maybe make a collage of party favours, if your a copywriter use a pencil with creative designs on the sides.

Not everyone needs a slogan or tagline, but it is a good way to remember your brand if the logo isn't catching as many eyes as you would hope. 'Keep it simple sweetie..' all you need is a few words, two sentences maximum that helps explain or describe your brand - or that helps consumers remember your brand or logo specifically.



The first and last thing I need any relationship (friendship, partnership, roommate...etc.) to know about me is the severity of my nut allergy. Then we can 'get down to business.' Because of this I wanted to incorporate it somehow into my brand logo because it is always going to be a part of me.

 

I received so much positive feedback about my logo that I decided to play up the brand even more. Everyone knows all deals and advertising comes with fine print, so I decided to play off that idea in a humorous way to make sure my brand was memorable.

Now that you've got your brand concept figured out it's time to start utilizing all that media we use in today's society!

 

Up next: There's nothing wrong with Tradition... when it come's to Media!