Walt certainly appeared on a lot of magazine covers (see my introductory essay on this at: Walt and the Magazine). How many, is something I have always wondered. I currently have around 4700 in my database, with somewhere around 400 having Walt on the cover (and another 500 to 600 with just Disney covers–again, all pre-1967). However, my feeling is that this doesn’t even scratch the surface of what was printed during Walt’s lifetime. I am sure I’ll be searching until the day I die. I always liked that Walt appeared on the cover of the August 1966 Success! Unlimited, as it seemed if there ever was a person that embodied all that the word success has come to mean, it was Walt Disney. There is an article inside titled “Walt’s Secret of Success,” and the author, William L. Roper seems to have interviewed Walt for it. Through this process, Roper came up with creative thinking and problem solving, the Walt Disney way. He stated that Walt “demonstrated … certain simple suggestions” at being a success. They are:
- First define your problem as clearly as possible
- Try to find a new approach, a novel, better way of doing things
- Dare to be different
- Keep your thinking practical, your feet on the ground. As Disney cautions: “We must not lose sight of reality”
- Cultivate your natural talents, as Disney did his ability to draw and then extend your creative field. He has described Disneyland as “an extention” [sic] of the fantasy world of his imagination
- If you are an employer, elected talented and enthusiastic persons to carry out your ideas. Inspire creative teamwork. Disney is quick to credit many of his organization’s greatest achievements to such team-work.
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