Archive for October, 2008
Walt Disney: The Magic of Leadership
October 20th, 2008 by Beth Kennedy
Just got back from a family trip to Walt Disney World! I really enjoyed in Disney’s Hollywood Studios the attraction – Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream. It is a well done walking tour of Walt’s life followed by a brief film. Some interesting Walt Disney tidbits include:
- Every Saturday, Walt would take his 2 daughters for special daddy time. While at the park he thought about how great it would be to have a place were parents and children could be engaged together…. thus came his idea of Disney Land!
- Disney based his character of Mickey Mouse on a mouse he had adopted as a pet while working in a Kansas City studio. Ub Iwerks reworked the sketches made by Disney so that it was easier to animate it. Mickey’s voice and personality was provided by Disney.
- Disney won 26 Oscars, including a record 4 in 1 year. He holds the record for the individual with the most awards and the most nominations.
- Disney did not see all his dreams come true. He passed away in 1966, a few years prior to the opening of his Walt Disney World Resort dream project in Florida.
Walt often said he had to thank Mickie Mouse for his success! Amazing to think of the happiness that Disney created by having a clear dream and vision!!
Washington D.C. – Leadership Coaching
October 4th, 2008 by Beth Kennedy
I just got home from attending a 3 day Certification Training on Leadership Coaching sponsored by Linkage Incorporated that took place in Georgetown. The best part was on the last day they hired an actress who we had to coach. We had a business case study of a high performer who had issues with her Manager and also micro-managed her reports. We had to work through the Coaching model each of the participants doing one section and then received feedback from the Master Coach and classmates.
I often wonder why I am so motivated to attend these training sessions. I had a great section to coach where my coachee wanted to improve engagement with her team. I had only 20 minutes to move her to action – “laser coaching”. I received some great feedback and found the exercise extremely helpful. Getting feedback can be challenging but the goal is to make us aware of our strengths and opportunity areas. Have you recently asked for feedback from your Manager, customers or direct reports to see how your doing?