was chatting with my significant other about how people who work at disney (both the parks and the corporate headquarters) have to “keep the magic alive”. for a company with so many IPs that are experience and imagination based, we wondered if disney troops have any techniques or mindsets for not getting jaded. googled around then i realized i could just ask on here 😅 thoughts? #jaded #magic #entertainment
Depends on where you work. I worked at corporate and while I enjoyed my time and the people I worked with... I didn’t find much meaning in what I was doing. There were a lot of limitations, as one would expect with a company that has so much IP... the limitations took away from the experience and some people who really aren’t meant to be there anymore... just love to play politics to keep their role. This is why I left, I just didn’t see myself growing in a company whose beliefs I didn’t embody. While it’s a good company, a lot of employees will drink the kool-aid and get lulled into a complacent position even though you know they can do better. There’s TONS of hierarchy.
Depends on which part of Disney you work for. I’ve known employees who had the best experience and others who were completely jaded.
oh! tell me more; what makes the difference and what do they do?
I’ve heard very good things from imagineers at Disney. They are very supportive, allow creativity, and open to creative ideas. I’ve heard very different things from much lower level employees who are more involved in day to day functions. Not sure if it’s a reflection on the company or generally the type of people who work in these different roles.
Had a friend who worked as an iOS developer there. At least on the engineering side, he said it was pretty laid back/good wlb, but low tc and super hierarchical.
It's a very needed experience to have. It's like that moment in life when you realize your parents aren't perfect.
IMO getting jaded about the company or it’s IP isn’t really a thing... you may get jaded about your role or your work, but not the company overall or the IP, which both are pretty universally loved and appreciated.
I agree to an extent. I don’t hate Mickey... but I do hate his birthday (Nov 18). Spent 3 years in a row dealing with crazy personalities and demands just for that date.
I work at Disney Streaming. I loved Disney before taking this job. Good people and high focus on work life balance. Very disillusioned now. I was told so many lies about compenstation and bonuses during my negotiations. None of the numbers matched up, and the discrepancy was enough that I would have passed. Plus I was hired as a remote emoyee and my manager makes a big push to have me onsite with the team more. Combing onsite adds a 6 to 7 hrs of commuting to my day. It took a year of asking before I was allowed to expense my travel costs and Another 6 months to be allowed to expense my food while traveling. I do not see the type of political backstabbing you might expect to find as part of an important project for such a big company, so that is a plus.
Can’t you use Zoom?
Ouch
I worked at Pixar, which isn't exactly Disney but is in the family, and honestly the magic was there all the time. Obviously there were the usual workplace frustrations, but everyone truly loved the films and the legacy and that kept us going. The TC was abysmally low so there was no reason to join or stay if you weren't genuinely passionate about it. The culture is also super fun, inspiring, and close. It felt like a family. I sometimes felt jaded with the work especially towards the end, but I never ever felt jaded about the films or the mission. I'll never be happier than I was there, but unfortunately there were no growth opportunities and I had to enter the real world at some point. I'm sure it's a very different story for staff at the parks or business roles in corporate.
There’s a Masterclass by the CEO that you can watch. It’s on leadership.