How To Be Like Walt summary

Lots of creative types are worried about their ideas being stolen, but when Walt Disney’s character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit was snatched up by a rival producer, he didn’t even feel bitter. Instead, Disney just created a new – now legendary – cartoon character: Mickey Mouse.

This story perfectly exemplifies Disney’s strongest suit, his powerful creativity. Disney thought of creativity as a skill that could be learned by anyone, rather than a talent reserved for a select few. As a result, he was constantly keeping an eye out for new ideas in the people and world around him.

You probably already know that Mickey Mouse went on to become wildly popular. But, despite this great success, Disney was never one to play it safe. As Mickey rose to stardom, Walt was already looking for the next mountain to climb.

In general, he was a tremendous risk taker, dead set on fulfilling his dreams. For instance, in the early 1930s, Disney wanted to make a full-length animated film that told the story of Snow White. His brother Roy, who was handling the company’s finances, pegged the costs at $500,000, around $7 million in today’s dollars.

So Snow White was popular. But just how popular are we talking, here?

Well, in 1938, grown men, desperate to see the movie, would ask their dates to accompany them to the cinema. It was abundantly clear that Disney had captured the imaginations of children and adults alike.

Have you ever had the thought that, no matter how good you get at something, it’s always possible to improve?

Well, Walt Disney definitely did. He was always looking for ways to make his projects better.

Imagine if every dreamer was stubborn enough to see his dreams through to the end, despite the effort it required. Well, Walt Disney did just that. He had the ability to stick to an idea even in the face of opposition.

Just take Disneyland. For years, Walt had dreamed of building this magical park. But his studio was still mired in debt, the experts didn’t think his fantasy-park project would succeed and his brother saw the idea as pure folly.

Most of us have been in a situation where other people are just coming up with better ideas than we are. And usually this makes us feel envious. But instead of wallowing in jealousy, why not simply put those good ideas to use?

That’s the approach Walt Disney always took. He remained open to the ideas of others and, like a sponge, would absorb countless ideas from the world around him.

Practically everyone on the face of the earth has heard of Disneyland, but did you know that Walt Disney founded other institutions to make the dreams of young people come true?

Disney was moved to leave a legacy for future generations and, in 1961, he started working on it. Walt and his brother Roy invested a large sum of money to build the California Institute of the Arts, a university for visual and performing arts.