by Marty Sklar
 It’s been almost 30 years since I made the first presentation of what would become “Mickey’s Ten Commandments.” Whether it was the name or the commandments themselves that came first, I can’t remember. But they soon became one of my “signatures,” along with my red-pen editing notes on story concepts and written material by my fellow Walt Disney Imagineers, and my quote that Imagineers consider to be their mantra: “There are two ways to look at a blank sheet of paper …” (More on this another day. Suffice to say that “opportunity” wins out over “fear” of making the first mark on that blank page.)
During the three decades I led the creative division at Walt Disney Imagineering in the creation of nine of the 11 Disney parks around the world, I developed a series of leadership principles I used every day. And I became passionate about communicating these principles, first internally at Disney Parks and Resorts Leadership Conferences and then at conventions in Florida and California, mainly through the Disney Institute, whose programs communicating “the Disney way” have influenced businesses and communities around the world.
 Soon “Mickey’s Ten Commandments” had gained three additions. First, “Mickey’s Ten More Commandments —The Leaders’ Bible”; then “The Leaders’ Bible—Part 2: Leadership is earned and must be exercised daily!”
These principles of leadership range from “Be responsive and make decisions—that’s what leaders do!” to “Learn to love your next assignment—be passionate about whatever you do.” Believe me, because I used these ideas every day in leading the Imagineers, these principles are not just slogans— they really work!
But as I applied them, I realized there was still something missing, something I had not addressed. As I told my audiences, “It’s you!” That’s why the fourth edition of “Mickey’s Ten Commandments” is called “Followership: How to be a great team player and help your leaders succeed!” Here’s a breakdown of the commandments.
Speak up! Great teammates raise issues before decisions are made!
The give and take of developing ideas is the key to building and maintaining a great organization—and great projects … or a great marriage or relationship. If your teammates do not speak up, it’s most likely because they don’t feel safe. You and your projects are then the losers; you’ll probably never hear the best ideas because you have not created an environment where your staff can speak up without fear.
Never be afraid to ask questions. That’s how we learn our parts— on stage and backstage.
I loved the style comedian Johnny Carson used on “The Tonight Show.” He gave you the answer first and then said, “and the question was …” We’re all sometimes guilty of having an answer without understanding the assignment fully; we forget the key: When you don’t fully understand the marching order, ask questions!
Make your experience count— that’s why you’re on the team.
Sometimes there’s a delicate balance to be struck between doing things the proven way and taking a chance on a new approach. But if you are the person with the experience on the team, you carry a special responsibility. You’re probably there because you know how it’s supposed to work or be operated. When there are new members on the team with new ideas—great! But don’t forget your know-how is valuable. That’s why you are on the team. Speak up!
Help the rookies succeed— you were new once, too.
I’ll never forget how scared I was when I made my first presentation to Walt Disney, two weeks before Disneyland opened in July 1955.
I had been hired to create a newspaper—“The Disneyland News”—to be sold for 10 cents on Main Street for Disneyland’s opening. You can imagine how scared I was as a rookie at 21 years old—never having worked professionally, still in college at UCLA—making a pitch to theWalt Disney!
There were some great Disney people who made sure my newspaper succeeded. A publicity writer, Jack Jungmeyer, who was about to retire, took me under his wing and wrote a beautiful column about Walt called “Under the Gaslight.” I always felt Jack Jungmeyer remembered he was young once. He definitely helped this rookie succeed. I guess that’s why my career at Disney lasted almost 54 years.
So don’t you go throwing rookies in those briar patches we all encounter; help them succeed!
Understand your role— everyone has a job to do.
Any good leader will agree casting is the key to the success of any project. Defining the story, assigning the principal roles, and giving authority and responsibility to the leaders are probably the most important parts of any new venture.
 It’s the same format as producing a Broadway theater blockbuster like “The Lion King” or “Mary Poppins.” Tom Schumacher, president of Disney Theatrical Productions and producer of the Tony Award-winning stage show of “The Lion King,” told me this about casting and role playing: “There are many elements in a show that need to be just right, or the show won’t work. Casting is one of them. Some of the best actors in the world are just not right for certain parts. Casting the right people—finding and bringing in potential actors for every role so that the producer and director can decide who can play what character—is the key to a successful show.”
It’s the same on every project you design, build, operate, and maintain. Put the right cast in place, and you have the best chance to be as successful as Broadway Tom!
Never fear failure—winners sometimes fail, too!
I’m a big sports fan. Covering football and basketball as sports editor of the school newspaper at UCLA in the ’50s was an amazing experience, especially observing the leadership qualities of the greatest college basketball coach ever, John Wooden, whose teams won 10 national championships. You can list so many things I learned from observing Coach Wooden: organization, defining roles, taking a chance, integrating the new talent, playing by the rules, supporting teammates, never fearing failure.
If you know sports, you may know success … but you will definitely know failure. Think about this: In 2008 there were 466 players in American Major League Baseball, and a total of only 66 batted over .300. That means only 14 percent averaged three hits for every 10 times they came up to bat. More specifically, that means seven failures out of every 10 chances!
The great Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox was the last Major League player to bat .400 … .406 to be exact, in 1941. He’s in the Baseball Hall of Fame for failing six times in every 10 at bats in that hallmark season!
But—know when to take a chance (and always let your leaders know you’re doing it).
We have a saying at Walt Disney Imagineering that drives the free-spirited atmosphere of our brainstorming sessions: “No idea is a bad idea!” In my opinion, much of the success of those Blue Sky meetings is driven by the openness for new ideas this attitude creates. And it’s certainly the best time to take a chance—all you can hurt is your ego!
So, yes, timing is very relevant to risk taking. We certainly would never take a chance if it involves guest safety, or if it means endangering our fellow Disney Cast Members. But going way back to your early school days, how many times have you heard someone else beat you to the spotlight because you held back, afraid that you might be wrong?
As a leader, you must create a climate where your “followers” feel totally safe to give you their best ideas; to risk taking a chance that even the wildest new way of doing something can receive a fair hearing from you and their peers.
Play by the rules. If you disagree, work to change them after the game.
This is the definition of a team player; everybody plays by the same rules! Somebody has to create standards of excellence that say, “This is who we are and what we believe.” The “do your own thing” world may exist somewhere “out there,” but at the Disney parks, everyone knows we set and maintain the highest standards for our guests—it’s tradition. After half a century of Disney Parks and Resorts, we have set the bar so high that our guests expect all of us—on stage and backstage—to live up to those expectations.
Share the joy of success— you didn’t do it by yourself!
I think it was my first day working at Imagineering when John Hench—later my mentor, and then my partner in the creation of Epcot and the other parks around the world—took me aside and explained “the Imagineering way.” “When we finish a project,” John said, “you can’t say, ‘I did this’ or ‘I did that’ … because so many hands have touched it! It’s a ‘we’ business, not an ‘I’ business!”
Support your teammates— at Disney there’s only one name on the door.
When I have made this talk in Florida and California, I asked the Cast Members how many of the founders of some of America’s biggest corporations they can name—for example, General Motors, Exxon-Mobil, Bank of America, Kodak, HP, and General Electric. Not only have times and products and managements changed—over and over and over again—there are few companies today where the founder’s name, especially the full name, remains a living force well beyond his or her lifetime.
It’s certainly a tribute to the mark Walt Disney’s products have made around the world—and the power of that name—that more than 40 years after his death, there’s still only one name on the door.
My final thought actually comes from Disney’s big boss … and it’s not Mickey Mouse! The CEO of The Walt Disney Company, Bob Iger, recently wrote: “Every hour of every day, we entertain thousands of guests in our theme parks, resorts, and cruise ships around the world. We speak to people of all ages, backgrounds, ethnicities, nationalities, and walks of life, yet they all share the same expectation: to live out their dreams and experience stories that will be engaging, entertaining, relevant—and just plain fun.”
As I always told my colleagues at Walt Disney Imagineering, “If you’re not having fun in the fun business—you’re in the wrong business!”
Marty Sklar formed Marty Sklar Creative Inc. “to answer all the requests I receive for concept development, speaking engagements, writing, and advice about leadership,” following his retirement from Disney on July 17, 2009—Disneyland’s 54th birthday. To honor his nearly 54-year career, he received the highest Disney tribute: dedication of a window in his honor on Disneyland’s City Hall. His last title was executive vice president and ambassador for Walt Disney Imagineering. He has also been honored as a Disney Legend and is a member of the IAAPA Hall of Fame. “Mickey’s Ten Commandments” © The Walt Disney Company
|
