While attending this week’s meeting of the American Business Women's Association, I had the pleasure to listen to motivational speaker Pat Williams. In his book “How to be like Walt: Capturing the Disney Magic Every Day of Your Life” Williams, who is the senior VP of the Orlando Magic, draws out of Walt Disney’s life a series of secrets that can help anyone in manifesting success in life.

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them. ~Walt Disney

As you know, I’m all about success and personal development and I must admit that when I found out about the speaker and the topic, it peeked my interest. Walt Disney, I wondered? Sure, I know that his vision has touched just about every human being on earth and living in Florida, I have also seen the extent of that vision manifested into a multi-million dollar empire. But what can be said about Walt Disney that would help me understand how a man who was fired from his first job for not being ‘creative enough’, who had more than his fair share of financial and emotional turmoil in his life managed to be the legend he is?

Every great venture, every successful project starts somewhere. An idea is sparkled out of nowhere. Sometimes we pay attention, sometimes we don’t. For whatever reason, there are times where we believe in our dreams and we allow ourselves to follow those magnificentl ideas and there are others that we just don’t believe that we can pull it off. As Pat Williams shared: “We are never too old to dream. In fact, the older we are the bigger the dreams should be.” This particular line got my attention. As a coach, I work with people that want more. They want to experience success knowing and believing they are capable of more. I have also come across individuals that give up and do not see how their ideas can be translated into anything they would be proud of. That’s why I wanted to share the ‘Five Secrets’ with you. I believe that they are practical and easy to understand.

#1. Make Today Pay Off Tomorrow.
A. Focus on three major blocks of life:
Yesterday: you can’t change anything about the past. Learn from it, benefit from it and move on. Drop the “only if” and “if I had just” lines; they do not contribute to your wellbeing in any way.
Today: live today to the fullest. “exhaust today” Make it your masterpiece!
Tomorrow: Be prepared to take advantage of the opportunities that will come. When you have a great today; you are investing in your tomorrow.
B. Invest in three areas of your life that will pay dividend to you tomorrow:
Your business: take the time to make it work. There are no quick get rich ways to do things, it takes time and effort.
Your children (and grandchildren) Pat, who has 19 children himself, referred to them as ‘gifts’ Investing in children means that you are investing in tomorrow’s leaders.
Yourself. I love this! You are the CEO of “yourself.com” You can be wonderful to others, but you will not be of any help if you don’t invest in yourself. Invest in yourself via education and health and wellness.

#2. Free Up Imagination. There is no limit to what you can accomplish in life. Make a point to shatter mental restrictions that keep you bound. This requires a mind-shift from limits to limitless; from scarcity to abundance; from powerless to powerful. We often buy into what someone else has told us. We believe when they put us down. Instead, challenge those ideas and make the decision to go beyond what you have ever considered possible!

#3. Strive for lasting quality. “We can lick ‘em all with quality” In order to become a quality operator Pat reminded us that “the customer is always the king/queen” When in business, we can never do enough for a client. This will ensure that clients are satisfied, that they come back and that they recommend you for future jobs. The other aspect here is that everyone in the team must be fully committed to make things happen and that you get everyone’s buy in towards achieving team’s goals.

#4. Stick to-it-ivity. Pat stated that Walt was good at making words up. (Imagine that!) The lesson here is that we cannot quit, no matter how tough things get. Did I mention earlier that Walt Disney suffered multiple emotional breakdowns and several bankruptcies? Many other people would have said, ‘whatever it is not worth it’ yet, he decided he would stick with it. Mortimer, his first mouse did not make it, but Mickey…that’s a different story!

#5. Have fun. In everything you do, make a point to enjoy it. When you put yourself in a position to have fun at the things you do, they become less than a chore and before you know it, things are happening. By the way, Pat was wearing a Hawaiian print shirt, and when he asked the audience if we knew why, he replied “have you ever seen anyone with a Hawaiian shirt having a bad day?”

The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing. ~Walt Disney

In short, optimism, allowing imagination to flow, perseverance, commitment to quality, leadership and integrity are some of the qualities that to this date, can be found in any of the Disney parks. And when I think about how hard he had it and still made it; I realize that my dreams are so powerful that they are worth fighting for. And so are yours! Give yourself the opportunity to follow your dreams. They are worth it and you are worth it. Take the time to invest in yourself, your business and your future.

Remember that whatever happened cannot be changed; yet you still have today to make it different. Believe in yourself and create a plan of action that will propel you to new levels. Allow these principles to work for you and capture the magic of what is possible in your life…every day.
If you are stuck trying to pursue your dreams. If you have been fired for not being creative enough or if you have almost given up because you do not think that it will work; life coaching might be for you. After all, remember that ‘it all started with a mouse.’
© 2010 Maria Martinez

Author's Bio: 

Maria Martinez is a Personal Development Coach; she works with with individuals who want to untap their potential, achieve greater levels of success and live happier, healthier lives. By providing support and accountability, individuals reach higher and greater goals; balance life at work and at home; and enjoy time doing things they most love. ‘Create the life you want; Start within.’

For more information about Maria Martinez and coaching services go towww.inneractivecoachingonline.com or via e-mail: inneractivecoaching@gmail.com