How Disney Achieves a 70% return rate

The section "When Does the Three O'Clock Parade Start?" (I'd quote the whole thing here but it's too long) is a great articulation of the kinds of problems I'm referring to when I tell people that I'm frustrated with the communications skills of people I work with. Understanding tone, context and audience, both as a deliverer and receiver of information, is not just for providing customer service. It's amazingly useful for simply getting along with other human beings. I have no problem with people that misspell words or use poor grammar - what kills me is the people who autopilot through their interactions with other people and who aren't bothered (or don't even notice!) when a conversation flies by them and they haven't developed or elicited even a flicker of common understanding.

This article was inspiring, thanks for posting it.

> "I don’t want you guys sitting behind desks. I want you out in the park, watching what people are doing and finding out how you can make the place more enjoyable for them." - Walt

> Walt viewed his theme parks almost as “factories” that produced delight and entertainment.

That's one of the reasons I don't enjoy Disney parks. They're too automated, too perfect, like some sort of strange Twilight Zone where things just seem fake.

Having just come back from a Disney World trip recently, I can say that this magic is still very much present.