Lesson #5: Know When To Pull the Plug

Article Overview: “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible,” said Disney. He was a man who rarely turned down the chance to seize a new and exciting opportunity. Whether in his animations or his amusement parks, Disney has built his career upon creating unique and innovative experiences. Because he was constantly entering unknown territory, doing so inevitably required taking risks. Not all of his risks paid off. Like all other entrepreneurs, Disney needed to learn the lesson about when to commit to an idea and when to pull the plug.

Lesson #5: Know When To Pull the Plug

“It’s kind of fun to do the impossible,” said Disney. He was a man who rarely turned down the chance to seize a new and exciting opportunity. Whether in his animations or his amusement parks, Disney has built his career upon creating unique and innovative experiences. Because he was constantly entering unknown territory, doing so inevitably required taking risks. Not all of his risks paid off. Like all other entrepreneurs, Disney needed to learn the lesson about when to commit to an idea and when to pull the plug.

After realizing the success of Disneyland, Disney grew determined to keep adding to and improving the park. He became convinced that the addition of a circus at Disneyland would be a brilliant idea. His staff warned him against it, but Disney was a stubborn man. And so, soon Disneyland had a circus. But, it was not the success Disney had envisioned.

In its first few days, the circus had already proven itself a disaster; one of the trapeze artists lost her top during a live performance; the camels took a liking to spitting at the crowds; the llamas got loose and created havoc while running down Main Street. Disney had originally been inflexibly dedicated to the idea of a circus. But, once he realized the amount of work it would take to get the venture operating properly, he decided to kill it. He had enough business sense to know that despite his passion for the idea, perhaps it was not worth the trouble it would invariably involve in making it profitable.

In a similar business venture, Disney became committed to the idea of ski resorts. He first invested in Sugar Bowl Ski Resorts in the 1930s, but it wasn’t until the 1960s when his interest became more serious. He decided to build a ski resort in Mineral King Valley, California but after much protest from environmental groups such as the Sierra Club, Disney was forced to discontinue his plans. However, he didn’t learn his lesson so easily this time. He was still interested in creating a Disney ski resort and so, in the 1970s, he made plans for another resort in Independence Lake, near San Francisco. This, too, had to be cancelled due to many of the same concerns as his first attempt.

Unlike his first project, where Disney quickly realized that the circus would probably cost him more money than it would make him, he continued to have hope in the idea of a ski resort. Like all entrepreneurs, Disney was walking the fine line between ‘never say die’ and ‘enough is enough’. He had to decide whether to fold his hands or gamble and play the round out. In the end, he sometimes made the right decision and sometimes not, but in either case, Disney demonstrated the flexibility and resilience he needed to have in order stay in the game. Whether one project was a failure or a success, Disney remained committed to his overall vision and stayed the course.

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Article Tags: amusement parks, brilliant idea, business sense, business venture, camels, club disney, disneyland, first few days, live performance, llamas, mineral king valley, sierra club, ski resort, ski resorts, stubborn man, sugar bowl, sugar bowl ski, trapeze artists, unknown territory, worth the trouble



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