You may have seen some curious tweets coming from Beckon people. The whole Beckon team flew to LA and spent the day together at Disneyland! It was an amazing thank you to an amazing team who works so hard (sometimes too hard!) for us. And it was SO fun. More fun, actually, than any of us expected.
But we didn’t pick Disneyland purely for fun. It is also a place that is professionally inspiring. First, we must look at the incredible foresight and vision that Walt Disney had to have in order to create Disneyland. There was nothing similar, anywhere in the world to look to for safety or certainty that Disneyland would work. There were no obvious clues that the world needed an oversized mouse and over-the-top kiddie rides in the Los Angeles suburbs.
But Disneyland is both a triumph of vision and of execution. The same vision, poorly executed, would have been a disaster. If the rides broke down all the time, or the place was dirty all the time or the people were not smiling all the time, it wouldn’t feel at all like the Happiest Place on Earth. Disney’s commitment to executional excellence is apparent in every corner of the park.
And lastly, who isn’t blown away by Disneyland’s incredible attention to detail? The experience in the LINE is at Disneyland is better than the rides at other theme parks. They don’t need to have a pirate-y looking person leaning against a fence playing a penny whistle. But they do. They pay someone an hourly wage to lean against a fence to play a penny whistle. If he were not there, no one would notice. But he is and it’s what makes Disneyland such an inspiration. It’s the little things that add up to greatness.
Building a great company requires an amazing vision, ruthless execution and attention to detail. For all these reasons, Disneyland was the perfect place for us to spend a day – recharging ourselves, strengthening our relationships with each other, and reaffirming Beckon’s commitment to greatness.