Creating Disney Magic: Lessons In Leadership, Management, And Customer Service

Today, Jody and I are answering a few questions about working with a disengaged employee that we didn't get to on a recent webinar. If you have an employee who is disengaged, you need to assess the situation. Determine if there has been a change, or is this how they have always been? If someone has changed, than something has changed, and it is your job as the manager to identify it and help them find the solution. If you notice an employee has disengaged, or their performance is slacking, sit down with them. Communicate your concern and remind them of what the expectation is. Help them see what they need to do to get back to the expected performance level. Give them specific examples and your specific expectations. If there is an employee you hired and they have disengaged from the start, you need to reset expectations clearly and communicate that there is a high standard. Own where you have been a part of the problem or where clarity may have been lacking. From there, you can communicate the desired directi

Today, Jody and I are at the California Grill with Jamie and JJ Eubanks, the founders of Magical Vacation Planners. We discussed relationships, leadership, and management during our time together, specifically how it has shifted during the past few years. As leaders, there are a lot of things to focus on. You can’t control others; you can only give them the tools needed. It is up to them what they do with them. You can manage your stress. If there is anything 2020 showed us, it is how to slow down, and take lemons and make lemonade. As a leader, priorities are paramount. It isn’t enough to focus on the bottom line. You need to focus on people. When trying times hit, make sure they are ok. Do what you can to take care of each other. You take care of your team. They take care of the clients. It is a trickle-down effect. Every crisis changes everything. Take the time to prepare your team. Turn setbacks into opportunities to learn and grow. Leaders help others get through things. You are a teacher and a student.

Today, Jody and I are answering some questions we received at a recent event hosted by the Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education. One question we received was how educators enhance or improve their hospitality curriculum. Embrace that hospitality touches every industry. It is about how we treat people. Encourage students to pursue a base degree in hospitality and utilize their master's degree specializing in a specific industry. Another question we received focused on Disney and how they value education and experience.  Disney cares if you can do the job, not about the degree you hold. They want to know what you can do for them. Performance is key. After that, you must stay relevant in your area of specialty. Keep up to date on industry trends and current standards. This goes much further than a degree. Next, what is the best advice on what educators can do to help their students land a good starting position out of college? Make sure they understand the importance of attitude, continuing

Today, Jody and I are recording live in my home office. We just finished recording our newest course for the Cockerell Academy and want to share some thoughts about the topic: Performance Excellence.  Simply put, performance excellence is implementing an environment and system that ensures the guest experience is amazing; which begins long before a guest arrives. It isn’t complicated. It is intentional. It starts with hiring the right people and equipping them. When you have the right people, you can focus on training beyond the necessary hard skills. Train and equip to understand how to be a team and support one another. Cultivate an environment where they know they are valued and cared for. You can simplify the plan for achieving performance excellence to the following action points: Get the right people Get the right expectations Get the right plan Hire the right people, train them, and treat them right. This is how you develop a different culture and get different results. Don’t get bored with the basic

Today, Donald Miller joins Jody and me and takes us through how you can grow your small business by following a simple framework. 65% of small businesses fail within the first 10 years. Often, this failure is due to a lack of systems, processes, and focus. By working within a proven framework, you are empowered to make the correct decisions and set a solid course. In Donald’s new book, he covers the six pieces you need for a tried-and-true framework. Overhead Leadership Product Marketing Sales Cash Flow If you have a handle on these six areas and create the needed systems, processes, and checklists to facilitate them, you can scale your business and watch it succeed. It is systems and processes that are proven, repeatable, and dependable that keep the ship running no matter who is present or what they are doing. Establishing a clear plan and executing it will take your business to the next level. If you are planning a trip to Disney, reach out to Magical Vacation Planners and let them plan it for you. You c

Today, Jody and I explore how changing job titles can clarify expectations. Many organizations need to think about reevaluating their job titles. A title needs to be a clear indicator of an individuals role. They must be associated with what they do and where they spend their time. Your title should tell you where to be and what you need to focus on. Rethink what your team is focusing on. This can help address customer frustration as well. Clear communication of expectations helps your customer know who to reach out to or interact with when frustration is present. Make sure you have the power to back the promise you are making, even with titles. You are setting expectations, and you need to make sure your team is living up to them. A title sets expectations for employees and guests. Help your team understand the "how" so they meet those expectations. Once you know why you want to do it, get everyone in the room. Everyone must be on the same page and have a clear picture of where you all are headed. Communicat

Today, Jody and I examine how you can get your team moving in the same direction. I recently did a workshop for the City of Miami Gardens. It was a wonderful experience. It demonstrated the importance of education and exposure when forming opinions. It is a good investment if an organization can afford a workshop or multi-day training. When a team goes through shared lessons, it helps to get everyone going in the same direction. Even if you can’t afford live training, there are many free resources that will foster the same experience and outcomes. There are many resources you can use to train and develop your team that won't cost you anything. Podcasts or books that you experience together. Take the time to do this with your team and get them to focus on the same things. Take in the content and then discuss it. Determine how it applies to your company or department. There is a way to make a difference. Don’t just listen or read for entertainment. Put it into action; this is how you build a common foundation.

Today, Jody, Cassie Tucker and I tackle how you can offer help in the right way. People regularly reach out to me, looking to connect. Networking is important, but there can be a lot of noise. If you want to stand out, you must offer to help in the right way. When you reach out, be specific about how you can serve. Can you save them time? Money? Help them increase their reach and build reputation? Tell them how you can enhance their business. Just like with a podcast, make sure you have a clear headline so people know what you can do and will do. Don’t be afraid to ask for what you want. The worse thing that can happen is someone says no. Speak up. Don’t be bashful. Let your contact know what you can do for them. Let them know the authority and experience you bring and how you can use it to serve their business. Don’t create more work for the people you want to work alongside. Be specific on what you do and how you do it. If you want to know how a vacation planner can help you specifically, reach out to Magic

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Today, Jody and I look at how you can focus your strategy and be efficient year-round. People tend to treat January or the first of the year as a time to overhaul their strategy, but this isn’t the best approach. Strategy is overused. Every day you need to focus on specific parts of your business: great staff, great processes, and great products. As leaders, your need to work on getting better every day. It doesn’t have to be a huge strategy meeting. Be intentional about approaching individualized areas where you have the opportunity to improve. Knowledge helps you make better decisions. Look at what is around you. What does your client need? What does your competitor offer? Asking these questions regularly will help you take measurable steps toward improvement. Do this every day. Help your team be knowledgeable and equip them to do what needs to be done to provide the best service possible. Take care of your customers and turn them into marketing machines who happily tell the story of how your company takes

  Today, Jody and I unpack the importance of understanding the expectations your supervisor has of you. Managers need to be clear on their expectations. If your manager isn’t clear, it is your job to clarify and make sure you understand. Ask questions to get the clarity you need. As an employee, how do you handle an unclear leader? Ask. Don’t be embarrassed or afraid of looking bad. Ask questions and make sure you understand. Asking questions will help you learn to do things properly. You only learn by asking questions and clarifying expectations. A good working relationship will create space for employees to feel comfortable asking questions. If you want people to be successful, you need a rule or playbook for your team to follow. People need to understand what needs to happen and what their part is in that need. Managers must follow up. Check in intermittently to see if they have come up with something they don’t understand. Anything there is a misunderstanding, add it to a list so you know what needs to be

Today, Jody and I discuss the impact being nice has on your career. The concept of being nice is something we learn very early in life. What happens when you are nice? People like you. What happens when you are not kind? People don’t like working with you. More and more, if people don’t care for you, they gang up on you. It can be challenging to respond with kindness when people are rude and unreasonable. You cannot take it personally. The louder they get, the quieter you get. Often, their anger isn’t only about the current situation, but the baggage they brought to it. Your employees follow your cue. Professionals are there to take care of obstacles. Remain calm when faced with an upset customer. We are in control of our attitude, our response, and how we present ourselves to others. When you are nice, people want to work with you. It is a great way to defuse tense situations. To move ahead in your career, you must be nice and be able to make hard decisions. You must be nice and get results. If you are nice

One of the best ways to retain high performers is to be a role model for the culture you want. Today, Jody and I answer the question, “What is a good way to refine culture to retain high performers when you are a small business?”  This question has a simple answer. Be a great role model. As a leader, you need to live the culture you want to see every day. Leaders that embody the culture create an environment where employees want to take care of the customer. Company culture is the number one reason people leave a job; pay is number 16. That says a lot. People want to work somewhere where the culture is genuine, top to bottom. There is a saying that people quit a year before they leave. As a leader, you are the foundation on which culture is built. It is similar to parenting. Good parents raise good kids. Parents that model how to be kind and compassionate raise kids that are kind and compassionate. It is the same with a leader in a company. More is caught than taught, so set an example for your employees. Be

During a Cockerell Community call in December Lee gave everyone a challenge asking them to think about what do you do with what you learn. When people are given an abundance of tools it is up to them to make use of them. During this episode Lee everyone to think about what do you do with what you learn. When people are given an abundance of tools it is up to them to make use of them.  As we enter the New Year, ask yourself: What do you do with what you learn? Often, people fill themselves with knowledge. We all have problems, and chances are we know what we need to do to fix them. The issue is that people don’t do the hard things. If you want change you have to actually address what needs to be changed. You don’t need a New Year to make changes. The New Year starts every morning so choose something to do today. Force yourself to confront and do hard things. Take a few minutes and identify something in your life that you need to address; something hard. Then pick a time frame and tackle it. If you need to, get

Today, Jody and I discuss how to reinforce good customer service. It’s not enough to require your team to provide customer service. You need to recognize specific actions, so it is reproducible. As a leader, it is your job to recognize and reinforce the attributes you want your employees to embody. The only way to do that is to be out where it happens. Have your feet on the ground and see how your team treats the customers. When you see behavior you want repeated, call it out, and recognize the individual for it. The best recognition is specific. When you are present and observant, it becomes easy to see what is cultivating in the culture of your team. You hire the team to make a difference, but you must create an environment for them to work within. Expressing genuine and specific interest in people is the best way to recognize individuals and help them feel valued. Pay attention today, on purpose, and call them out for it. Recognized and rewarded behavior gets repeated. Bring it up and follow up. Make recog

If you don't deal with your problems right away they will never leave you. For a big part of my career I was not good about dealing with the hard thing. But when you don't address those things they will haunt you and mess with every other part of your life. Most people don't have the discipline to deal with the hard things. However, when you don't deal with those hard things it will only get worse. This is what I think is causing a lot of anxiety in people right now. The problems they have keep building up. One thing that can put things in perspective and help you deal with your problems is taking a vacation. Reach out to Magical Vacation Planners. They can help you plan your next vacation. You can reach them at 407-442-2694. Connect with Lee About Lee Cockerell Mainstreet Leader Cockerell Academy

Today, Jody and I discuss the recent changes that have taken place at Disney. I also provide my interpretation of what may have led to it and what we, as leaders, can learn. As many have heard, there was a recent change in leadership at Disney as Bob Chapek stepped down and Bog Iger returned to head the company. When Bob Chapek stepped into his role at Disney, he came in hard, and centralized everything. Unfortunately, centralizing communicates distrust. This led to mistakes and an atmosphere of discontent. I’ve mentioned before how business is a three-legged stool. Take care of your customers, take care of your employees, and take care of Wall Street. If you don’t do one of these, you become unbalanced, and it will topple. A three-legged stool can’t stand up when it has missing legs. Great people want to be involved and make a difference. When you communicate distrust, you will lose your best people. When you get a good team, trust them. Give them authority. You aren’t as good as you think you are. If you wa

  Today, Jody and I discuss the difference between having fewer meetings and more conversations and how that can benefit your company. I recently attended a two-day conference for camps in Chicago. Something that stuck out was the number of things they solved and situations they brought clarity to through involved conversations. We are used to a culture of meetings. People show up and listen to others talk, and everyone walks away without solving much. As a leader, don’t sit at a table with people who don’t want to be there. Be strategic and get the people who care about the topic in the room. Now you can get to the bottom of things. Another approach is getting rid of the table. Without a table, it is harder to be disengaged or on your phone. It isn’t too difficult to implement. Take a problem and introduce the concept of gathering people together and getting opinions. Allow the appropriate amount of time. Once people get comfortable, they will start contributing.  Not only does this expand your pool of knowl

Today, Jody and I look at the inner workings of the hospitality industry and what we can learn from it regardless the industry you are in. I worked in hospitality for many years. Much of what I learned during my time as a General Manager of a hotel chain formed the foundation for how I approach customer service. It is important to gather facts and information. There are different types of customers, and each type has different needs. Get on the ground and figure out what they are looking for. Build a list of what your customers need before they have a chance to ask for it. Your customers and employees know everything you need, get out and talk with them. They are happy to do a good job; they need the tools. Set a clear standard of excellence and explain the specifics. Be guest focused. Stop what you are doing and focus on your guests. People want what they want, and they want it immediately. Meet those needs. Teach each area of your organization how they can best meet the needs of their customers. As the admi

Today, Jody and I discuss what it means to take calculated risks in your career. I started taking risks early in my career and I wouldn’t change it. Taking risks can be intimidating, but they aren’t as great as they are in your mind. It is easier to take risks earlier in your career; you have your whole life ahead of you. When you start taking risks, you build confidence. That confidence helps you grow and make wise decisions on the risks you take as you continue your career. You don’t want to regret life. People are so afraid to lose their security, which is understandable. Don’t let security and the fear of loss hinder advancing your future. Once you start taking risks, it gets easier. It is necessary to have a solid support system when you are taking risks. Get input from those in your life. Once you are more established in your life, and your decisions affect other people, it can become difficult to take those risks, and you need to give more consideration to the ones you decide to take. What do you consi