Disney Leadership Lessons

Episode 410,   May 23, 2023, 09:00 PM

Today, we're having a conversation about one of the greatest business people ever; Walt Disney.

Many of us are familiar with Disney. Whether it's his Disney World, Disneyland, all the movies, cartoon characters, and in recent times, the Disney+ streaming service. 

But very few of us know the story of how Walt Disney and his brother, Roy dreamed of then built the empire that we now know today as the Disney Corporation.

So joining us today is Jeffrey Barnes, a Disney expert who has studied Walt Disney from a very young age.  Jeff has dedicated his entire life to understanding the Disney Corporation, the Disney family and the experiential ecosystem they've built.

In this episode, we talk all about the qualities that made Walt the great businessman we know him as today. What kind of person was he? What allowed him to achieve such phenomenal success? What were his early setbacks and how did they shape him? What were the consequences of those setbacks? And how did it create the Disney that we know today?


  • [7:30] - What kind of man was Walt Disney and how did his young years forge his character and resilience?
  • [11:51] - A real life story from rags to to riches that will inspire you and prove that we all have an inner Walt Disney.
  • [20:50] - The modern day leadership lessons we can learn from Walt and apply in our dental practice today.
  • [28:29] - It takes a fair amount of courage for someone to start any kind of business, including a dental practice. It’s easy to be courageous when you know something will work, but you have to draw on different skills to find that courage when there is massive uncertainty associated with your decisions and goals.
  • [35:21] - Walt always wanted to be moving forward, and this lesson shows how to grow your business. Scale your successful business for bigger profits.
  • [42:45] - If you want to channel some Walt Disney into your own practice today, here are 3 easy tips to apply instantly.