I received a discounted rate for accommodations and park passes to attend the Disney SM Moms conference at Disneyland. I was responsible for the purchase of the conference package and travel at my own expense. All opinions are my own.
There are so many experiences about our trip to the Disney SM Moms conference that I could share with you. I shared the magic of Disneyland we experienced in the parks in a post already as that was a huge part of our trip. This time, I want to share with you the inspiration and special experiences that makes Disney really, truly different in all that they do and how that can apply to what we pursue as well.
As part of the conference agenda, one day was dedicated to a conference schedule with inspiring speakers including Grumpy Cat, Leslie blogger of Disney Bound, LeVar Burton from Reading Rainbow and Star Trek, Maxine Clark Build a Bear founder, Doug Bowman Creative Director at Twitter and other speakers. From all of these speakers – the one thing I really took away was the message that to be a success you have to be unique and also do everything you do to your absolute best ability.
Jay Ward, Cars Land designer, shared with part of the vision it takes to create an area in the park like Cars Land. He took us along on a virtual road trip showing us what the research trip was like to help the designers develop Cars and the care and attention to detail that went in to making everything authentic. He talked about how every little detail matters from the exact hue of red to represent Lightening McQueen as he rolls into Cars Land just like a traditional character would be there to greet guests and what it was like to put such detail into Ramon’s paint show going as far as to drip paint in the right places where it would likely be in a real paint shop and giving that part of the ride an authentic paint smell in his shop. Those little details are what really makes the ride come alive as you are on it making you feel completely immersed in the world.
Cars Land at Disneyland
When you put a passion and a determination behind the things you pursue trying to make your work the very best it can be, it shows and people both notice and want to come back to experience your unique touch again and again. It doesn’t matter what field you are in – the arts, teaching, sales roles, or even blogging. When you take the time to show pride in your work and put hard work and effort behind it you’ll be able to create something that holds an important purpose in this world.
We can see that endless effort everywhere you look in the Disney parks and in everything that Walt Disney touched. He showed us through his passion that if you’re going to do something, you better do it right. The funny thing is, even Grumpy Cat can teach us the same lesson – he does what he is good at and does it perfectly! It was so cool to see him completely happy and content but with a face and eyes that showed the world the grumpy face he has become famous for. He is not only unique but stayed true to himself the entire time.
Thanks to Josh Hallett @hyku for this amazing close-up he snapped at the conference of Grumpy Cat!
Together, their stories taught life lessons to me that to be successful in my own right – be that blogging or any other projects I might attempt – the most important thing is putting all of yourself in all the way. Put in hard work and your own unique personality and interest and style and your work will stand out.