Episode 101 – Jeff Barnes (Dr. Disneyland), Part 1

Jeff Barnes

We return to our regular interview format with Dr. Jeff Barnes, author of The Wisdom of Walt Disney: Leadership Lessons from the Happiest Place on Earth (Disneyland): Success Strategies for Everyone We recorded this live at Disneyland, again at the Hungry Bear Restaurant. We did have to move from one table to another because of the volume of other guests, but rather than stop and restart the recording, we just take you with us as we move tables!

 

Thank you again to everyone who shared a story or memory for the 100th episode! If you didn’t get yours in—or if you’ve got another one to share—it’s not too late. Send it in using one of the methods I’ll share after the interview and I’ll happily include it in a Listener Feedback section on an upcoming episode.

 

On the weekend of January 15-17, 2016, I will run 22.4 miles for Team Muscle Makers for Ullrich Congenital Muscular Dystrophy. Yes, I’m running a 5K, a 10K, and a Half Marathon, all in support of this important cause, but I need your support to help them! Please listen to the details in the episode, then go to http://storiesofthemagic.com/tmm to donate!

In this episode, Jeff talks about…

  • How he became interested in Disney, especially in Disneyland;
  • The moment he fell in love with Disneyland and with the idea of sharing it with others;
  • Why Disneyland doesn’t get old to him;
  • What The Wisdom of Walt is about & why it needed to be written;
  • Some of his favorite features of the park that he wrote about in the book;
  • What sets Disneyland apart from other amusement, and even theme, parks;
  • The observation he made that convinced him he needed to write the book;
  • The Donald Miller book that helped him tweak his story perspective;
  • Whether he’s a right-tunnel person or a left-tunnel person;
  • Why he needed to be the one to write The Wisdom of Walt;
  • Being diagnosed with a brain tumor and how it affected his dream;
  • The best thing about having written the book;
  • Why our world needs you to step up;
  • The process of writing the book;
  • The last chapter to have a word written in it, the first one finished, and the one that became a model for all the others—and they’re all the same one;
  • The vision he had for the book;
  • The exact moment he realized this was really going to happen, this book was going to come to be.

 

10420201_818395558241963_4969005857706654186_nFind Jeff:

I want to hear from you, so please email me, leave a comment below, or call the Listener Feedback line at (734) 23-STORY.

If you call in, don’t worry about having to sound perfect. If you ask me to, I’ll edit out any mistakes so you sound as good as you possibly can. You’re even welcome to start your entire story over again and I’ll use the “take” you want! If you want to submit a story anonymously, for whatever reason you may have, email it to me and tell you me you wanted it shared that way. I’ll read it on the podcast, but keep your name private.

Thanks for listening!

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Music and voiceovers provided by Rick Moyer.

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