After a lovely 3-hour flight (that I mostly slept through... after having a wonderful conversation with an older couple from Stratford area,) and being delayed from leaving the plane for almost 40min because of a wonderfully missed Canadian snow storm freezing the boarding bridge... I'm finally home, rested, distressed and back to my wonderful world of cats, cleanliness, family, friends, Tim Hortons, Ketchup Chips, Mars bars, Smarties (NOT Rockets,) and Canadian hospitality!
All I wanted from Santa this year was the chance to share with future ICP students of the adventures they will have if they choose to contend in the program, so without further adieu here is one of my final accounts from the Disney International Exchange Program of 2013.
Please stay tuned for more videos of my time there in the New Year, and the upcoming jump back into the world of college life & advertising!
I’m surprised to say most of my co-cast didn’t figure out I’m Canadian (it’s not like we have an accent or anything..) so yes I am technically International which means I need to get American citizenship so that Disney can rehire me... But while we’re all waiting for that day I have a few goodbyes to give...
My managers tell me I need to return ASAP ... or really ASAYGC which stands for 'as soon as you graduate college' or for those of you know me so well.. 'as soon as you (get a) green card!' But until I return, Merry Christmas Fantasmic Family and stay crazy!
Wow, what a busy week here in America... people packing, people saying goodbye, people not wanting to leave or trying to extend, celebrating the holidays and apparently.. celebrating birthdays!
Throughout my time here I've tried to celebrate as many birthdays as I could and now it was my turn to be celebrated. I thought I would take the time to show how a birthday is celebrated in the Magical world of Mouse and Friends...
Maybe it was the IMC event planner in me... or my ever growing love for my Macau students that fueled my ambition to plan their "first North American Christmas" while we finish the final days of our Disney Exchange Program.
No matter what the cause the effect was greater than I could've imagined. They were all very surprised and pleased with all the work that my friends and I put into one of our final parties in Florida.
The house was decorated, a Christmas tree was made, gifts were wrapped and a glamorous 'Canadian' turkey dinner was made for all... we danced, laughed, made our own 'Harlem Shake' video (and was abruptly complained to by the neighbours below us because we made their "ceiling" shake,) ate pumpkin pie and played numerous games - of course many pictures were taken.
I'd just like to thank everyone that is involved in this program, you really don't know what you're missing until you take the chance and come on this adventure for yourself. I've met so many crazy wonderful people and made friendships that I know are going to last for a very long time.
WARNING: Spoiler Alert...
For those of you reading this who haven't gotten your gift from Stephanie and I... STOP READING NOW AND GO GET IT!
I apologize but I couldn't wait any longer, I feel that I need to share our handy work with the rest of the 'inter-web.' To celebrate our fabulous time together my friend and I wanted to make a video about the craziest thing that our new Chinese friends would always remember about us... and without further adieu here is what came about...
P.S. We also organized a Secret Santa and I would like to thank whomever gave me the wonderful new addition to my 'Baller Hat' family. I love my new hat and I have named her Addie and she has already become well acquainted with her sister Semi (Because they're Adidas & Florida State hats - Florida State's mascot is the Seminole... get it?)
Is your CP program ending too fast & too furious? I thought I would give a little insight to what goes on during your final couple weeks of your program...
Please stop by for my last official Disney ICP post on the last day of my program! And as always you may comment with any questions you want answered. Once I'm back in the land of maple syrup & hockey I will be reposting any topics I've missed talking about along with returning back to College life.
Blogging is one of the best ways to communicate your creativity, knowledge, advice and stories with other people in a vast way. It can be used just for personal or family use, to educate the public or to enhance your business. It is also very hard to keep up with; it takes a lot of self-motivation to keep up with it consistently and to find topics to write about (another reason why I have various different categories to write about in case I get stuck on one.)
I wanted to show you how much blogging does make a difference. Online communication is a great way to see how many people your messages really get to. Just like an advertising campaign blogging websites can track all sorts of different facts about your viewers to let you see that people really are paying attention to what you're saying.
This posts isn't necessarily informative, but more like a little ray of 'inspirational hope' to my other fellow bloggers that people are paying attention - even if it seems no one is or no one bothers to comment or share your posts.
Today I found out that most of the viewers from my blog are actually American.
This doesn't really surprise me because since coming in June on the Disney ICP Program I have been blessed with many new friends, co-cast members and managers that have taken a liking to my blog.
Other countries have surprised me... such as Malaysia, Lithuania, Germany, Australia, France and Denmark.
Another great thing about online communication is that Google now let's you translate your blogs so that you have the opportunity to have so many viewers from around the world that speak multiple languages.
Next I made a list of the websites that either have 'ads' about my blog posts and the 'search words' that people have been typing into search engines that bring up my blog posts the most.
Finally, I made a list of the most viewed posts I have done in the now 3rd years of my blog (awe I think its going to be time for a birthday celebration soon...) If you see a post you haven't read yet, please feel free to poke around and see what you can find.
Every once in a while it's just good to step back and realize that what you're saying is being heard and not to give up even when it seems pointless. I for one take time every now and then to search new blogs and read what they have to say - so you never know I may find yours one day so keep writing!
As we attempt to renew ourselves regularly, we will face obstacles along the way - such as lack of motivation, self-discipline or confidence. Life tends to speed up and get too busy for self-reflection, especially in hard or trying times...
Be Strong in Hard Moments
Create for yourself a 'weekly compass' to keep you on track when your getting stressed out. Think about what the one important thing is that you have to do during that week. Always think of Quadrant 1 and 2 instead of 3 and 4...
Include goals such as getting up on time "mind over mattress," disciplining yourself to eat healthier, learning to control your temper a little more every day & sticking to your daily regimen even when you get rushed.
The final chapters of Covey's books review what you should work on within all the habits to create your own personal profile of yourself (this includes your Emotional Bank Account, your Personal Mission Statement and all the other values/goals we have determined through the 7 Habits.)
Work from the Inside-Out
The Inside-Out approach (or in other words the transition between Private to Public victory,) focusses on personal effectiveness preceding interpersonal effectiveness. One must be achieved before the other. By improving ourselves first, we can then help others.
Focus on your Circle of Influence
When you look upon your concerns you have to realize there are some things that we cannot control - such as the people around us. The things outside our control are in our Circle of Concern. You need to be patient and learn not to focus all your energy on trying to fix this circle and instead focus on your Circle of Influence. When you focus more on what you can influence you will find that your concerns get smaller.
Continuously Work to Change habits
To form effective habits Covey suggest you only need 3 elements... desire, knowledge and skill. Without desire you will not truly wish to change. Without knowledge, you will not know why or what you need to change. And without skill you will not be able to carry out a course of correction.
"We first make our habits, and then our habits make us."
I hope that through our journey together into the works & teachings of Dr. Stephen Franklin Covey, you have learned so much more than you expected.
Some of these habits were already known to me, others I have struggled to work on, and others I have denied for some years.. I know this will be the case for some of you and I hope that it never has to be again now that we have all transitioned into more effective people together.
As you continue to 'sharpen your saw of skills' please don't forget to look back on all the habits and experience we've learned about here together...
"A long, healthy and happy life is the result of making contributions, of having meaningful projects that are personally exciting and contribute to & bless the lives of others" - Hans Selye
Please feel free to leave your comments on Stephen Covey's teachings or any experiences you have had during our journey. Or if you have any questions about Stephen Covey or if you want me to read and cover any more of his work.
As most of you know I've been working not only behind the scenes helping Mickey and his friends dress for the parks, but backstage at the FANTASMIC! Show at Hollywood Studios. I can honestly say I've never been more happier at any job in my entire life. The cast members are crazy and so nice - and boy do they love to dance!
If you still don't know what Fantasmic! is then check out my video for answers...
A lot of friends and family have been asking specifically what I do at the show, and just like with working in the "costuming character room' it is very hard to explain... other than the usual laundry duties like making sure Donald's shirt is dry cleaned properly or Genie's shoes are nice and shiny...etc. I will do my best to explain the 2 tracks that I know...
Track 4 - The Beast Track
First you put away the laundry from the night before, which was separated into lights, darks, 'cotton' and hand-washed. Then Mickey and his friends start arriving after visiting all the other parks.
You make sure that Rafiki's monkey friends are brushed and happy (and be warned they unfortunately shed like all healthy monkeys do...) Next you make sure Minnie, Pinocchio and Goofy have all of their clothes and Pluto hasn't buried his collar somewhere. Make sure that all the jewels on Belle and Snow White's dresses are sparkling and that her Price hasn't lost his cape & hat. All the while listening to Governor Radcliffe complain about his clothes and blame Meeko for taking his hair bows... Finally you make sure that the Beast's tuxedo has come back from dry cleaning and that he stops squirming long enough to also be bathed and brushed.
During the show you help prune the dancing flower's petals, make sure Radcliffe looks his best, then force Beast into his tuxedo (we all know he hates wearing it even if he does look marvelous.) Then you wait to see if anyone else needs help with their dresses, accessories...etc. like if Ariel wants her tail scales shined, or Mary Poppins needs help with her boots. Then you go onto the Steamboat and make sure that Pluto keeps his collar off and doesn't get it tangled into his banner.
Track 5 - The British are Coming
This track also helps Track 4 to put away the previous evening's laundry and also help brush monkeys. Next you make sure to find Genie's red sash for his pants, keep Meeko away from pestering Radcliffe, make sure that Stitch stops eating his flower lei, fix Geppetto's glasses and make sure he has his apron & finally give both Baloo and Brier Bear baths and a good brushing. You also have to make sure that all the British have their clothing, boots & shovels and that Pocahontas' native friends have their leather and clothing as well.
During the show you keep the monkey's from causing trouble as the show begins, give Rafiki a brush in between being on stage, help Tiana get into her green petal wedding dress, scold the evil Queen for becoming the ugly Hag, make sure Goofy hasn't tied his shoe laces together on the Steamboat and make sure Minnie doesn't have any wrinkles in her dress.
Once the show is done then we start helping everyone undress and give them baths (Have I mentioned that no one wants a smelly Stitch - phew!) We comb feathers and brush fur, polish shoes and sew any tears. Then we put things away or hang wet clothes to dry or to be sent out to dry cleaning.
Then your day is done! You wish everyone a good night and do it all again the next day with a BIG smile because you're working for the BEST company ever!
My managers tell me I need to return ASAP ... or really ASAYGC which stands for 'as soon as you graduate college' or for those of you know me so well.. 'as soon as you (get a) green card!' But until I return, Merry Christmas Fantasmic Family and stay crazy!
Maybe it was the IMC event planner in me... or my ever growing love for my Macau students that fueled my ambition to plan their "first North American Christmas" while we finish the final days of our Disney Exchange Program.
The house was decorated, a Christmas tree was made, gifts were wrapped and a glamorous 'Canadian' turkey dinner was made for all... we danced, laughed, made our own 'Harlem Shake' video (and was abruptly complained to by the neighbours below us because we made their "ceiling" shake,) ate pumpkin pie and played numerous games - of course many pictures were taken.
I'd just like to thank everyone that is involved in this program, you really don't know what you're missing until you take the chance and come on this adventure for yourself. I've met so many crazy wonderful people and made friendships that I know are going to last for a very long time.
I wanted to show you how much blogging does make a difference. Online communication is a great way to see how many people your messages really get to. Just like an advertising campaign blogging websites can track all sorts of different facts about your viewers to let you see that people really are paying attention to what you're saying.
Today I found out that most of the viewers from my blog are actually American.
Be Strong in Hard Moments
As you continue to 'sharpen your saw of skills' please don't forget to look back on all the habits and experience we've learned about here together...
Once the show is done then we start helping everyone undress and give them baths (Have I mentioned that no one wants a smelly Stitch - phew!) We comb feathers and brush fur, polish shoes and sew any tears. Then we put things away or hang wet clothes to dry or to be sent out to dry cleaning. 