What Disney Taught Me About Leadership

Disney LeadershipAfter 12 years of working at Disney I guess you could say that I have been Disney-fied. Meaning that the teaching and training  I learned are going to be with me for the rest of my life. I will never be able to walk by a piece of trash and not feel the urge to pick it up. I will probably be using the two finger point or the open hand gesture anytime I tell people how to get somewhere. I will always refer to my time there as being a cast member and not an employee.

I will also never forget the life lessons I have learned about leadership. The most valuable lesson I will hold dear is that my cast helped shape me into a leader. Whether is was good or bad I learned how do deal with everything from personalities to fires and evacuations. The lessons are well learned.

Today I want to share with you 3 things that I learned as a leader that apply to network marketing.

Disney Taught Me a Lot about Leadership

It wasn’t always easy to be a leader. There were times when I just wanted to be a line cook again. Just give me one thing to worry about and not the entire operation. But leadership does have its rewards and in network marketing they can be really big rewards.

Here are the 3 lessons I learned about leadership.

  1. Listen – one of the most important skills any leader can have is the ability to listen. There are many times that people came to me with their problems, not expecting me to solve their problem but help them find a solution. Or sometimes they just needed someone to listen while they vented.  Listen can be a very powerful tool. Recently I read, You have two ears and one month, you should be listening twice as much as you speak. 
  2. Action – We reward leaders that take action. Those that are willing to do something as oppose to nothing. As a Chef in the kitchen it seemed that it was required that I take action. Find an item we were out of, fix the dish machine, find plates, take care of a food allergy, and the list goes on. But to be a great leader action is required. Do something every day that is driving your business forward.
  3. Build Relationships – I would not have been a successful leader if I didn’t build relationships. I built them with my culinary cast, front of house manager, engineering, pest control, front desk, guests, and my leaders. Relationships allowed things to go smoothly in my kitchen. I learned that you have to partner and be willing to ask for help. A good leader knows their strengths and how to surround themselves with people that know more than they do. Engage with people. get to know them.

I can relate a lot of what I am learning about being a network marketer to my time at Disney. Both have very similar paths.

Thank you so much for taking time to read or watch this post. Truly a blessing to have you here. Hope you are having a fabulous day.

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Yours in Gratitude,

Chef Katrina

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    3 replies to "What Disney Taught Me About Leadership"

    • Kaitlyn

      Disney seems like it could teach you so much. All three of these are spot-on to managers and leaders. Building relationships is so important, being able to adapt to personalities and learn from others are great skills to have!

    • Tandy Elisala

      Hi Katrina, this post title got my attention. Disney and leadership go together well. Your three leadership lessons are right on. I do think listening, taking action and building relationships/connecting are all important. I wonder though whether building relationships is higher up the list. Listening is an active part of building relationships and people will talk to those they know, like and trust. All the things you mention breed all three. Thanks

      • Katrina

        Relationship building I would have to say is number one. I wrote this post not long after I left the company. I had to look back and remember the lessons and not my perception. Connecting and listening are crucial for any success. Love your input Tandy! 🙂

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