The biggest difference between Disney dorms and university dorms is that work managers have the same goals as the school and educators do. Our education and our classes came first. Many of my friends in college struggled with a work/school balance because their employers weren’t concerned about their education priorities or schedules. But that was never an issue in the Disney College program because everybody agreed we were there to learn, and work was always in support of that.

The Disney classes didn’t correspond directly to my college degree program, but they were a huge benefit to me professionally. The Disney classes really taught customer service, gave me a strong work ethic, and helped me learn to put the job ahead of my personal needs and feelings while at work. At Disney, you cannot bring your personal problems to the workplace, and I definitely learned that lesson well.

[hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]I didn’t have to pass any interviews to get into a university. But the interview process for the Disney College program was extensive and nerve-wracking. It was much more intensive and surprising than any college application process I’d ever experienced.[/hen-ui-text]

[hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]I tended to work late afternoon and evenings, so I would typically wake up in the morning, hang out by one of the apartment pools or attend class (if it was a class day). Then, when it was time for work, I would hop on the company-provided trolley and go to the cast-member entrance for the park I was assigned to. There, an always-smiling security guard would check my ID, and from there I’d immediately go to the costuming department where I would be given what to wear for my specific job at the location I was assigned to on that day.[/hen-ui-text] [hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]After changing in our costume, Cast Members would take a very specific, behind-the-scenes path to our assigned attraction. The public would never see us going to or from work, only being at work. (At the Disney-MGM Studios, the rules were slightly relaxed because it is not uncommon to see very strange characters mixing on a real Hollywood set. So we had a little more freedom to travel. But in the Magic Kingdom, Cast Members would enter or exit at very precise locations so you’d never see a Tomorrowland Cast Member wandering through, say, Frontierland.)[/hen-ui-text] [hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]We’d then spend the next eight hours interacting with people from literally all over the world. Some of the guests were having a great day, but some were not. But we always smiled, were always helpful, and if we didn’t speak the same language, we’d find a way to communicate — or find someone who could. Our job was to make every guest’s trip magical, no matter the barriers.[/hen-ui-text] [hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]Sometimes I was fortunate enough to work parade crowd control, setting up the ropes and helping people while waiting for parades or fireworks to begin. I always enjoyed that the most because fireworks were my favorite, and Disney-MGM Studios always had the best fireworks in the park. Plus I loved seeing people’s surprised reactions. I loved seeing their day end with so much magic.[/hen-ui-text] [hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]After the park closed, we’d return to costuming and we’d surrender our threads to the costuming Cast Member for cleaning. Leaving, we’d say goodbye to the still smiling security guard, take the Trolley home, and we were free to crash or enjoy whatever nightlife or entertainment we wanted.[/hen-ui-text] [hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]By the way, I loved that I was not responsible for keeping track of or cleaning any part of my costume. Every Cast Member at Disney wears a costume, regardless of whether they served the public or not. For example, even the workers in the staff-only commissary wore costumes. Outside of Disney, we’d call that a uniform. But, Disney is very serious about treating all of life as a stage, and every employee has a part to play, and a costume to wear.[/hen-ui-text] [hen-ui-text variant=”b4″]I would check my costume out, wear it, and turn it in. And the next day, it was always clean and pressed. And it was the same for every Disney Cast Member.[/hen-ui-text]

Before graduating with my Ductorate from Disney University, if I was having a bad day, and if you were paying attention, you might actually notice it — and agree. But Disney University gave me a larger worldview. Not only is everything not about me, I learned that very little is. Whether I interact with a dozen people or a thousand people on a given day, I could be a source of negativity or a source of happiness for each person. Disney really taught me to be a source of happiness — and I like to think that now I’m helping make wherever I am a little bit like the Happiest Place on Earth.