29-second video: Read front the back the first time. After that, you can start anywhere, anytime.
Sooner or later it becomes crystal clear. Life is not a dress rehearsal.
dad
“WARNING: Jeff Noel’s book “Mid Life Celebration” is a short read that very well may change your life. I had started reading it while on a long drive, but was so moved that I finished reading it out loud to my wife . It challenged us to consider our choices and to discuss the choices that we have made, both individually, and as a couple. This book comes with my HIGHEST recommendation. This would be an excellent resource for couples discussion groups and book clubs. I personally bought multiple copies to pass along to my close friends.”
Random photo edit (by accident) yesterday. Media interview in South America, Pre-Covid. Trying to balance the seriousness of my speech with the fun of wearing a Goofy hat on camera afterwards.
Every person is telling a story about what they value.
dad
Truly, we hate to admit that we have fallen behind in slaying our regrets. This book promises to gently, directly, and lovingly challenge you to put up or shut up. Here’s another Amazon review…
“This book is short, sweet and goes straight to the point. The author is correct…life is not a dress rehearsal…it is a live performance and we are the lead actors so we better make it count. In his very direct and bluntly honest way the author enlightens us to what we should already know and see but miss due to our own ‘on the go’ lifestyles. This book provides us with a framework to self assess where we are today, where we want to be in the future, and if we’re not already there, make a plan to get there. I recommend it to people of all ages.”
5.0 out of 5 stars Simplistically Brilliant Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 26, 2014
Short video, visual look inside…
20-second video: Published Thanksgiving Day 2013.
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This website is about our MIND. To read today’s post about our BODY, click here.
23-second video: After a week or so posting book reviews on LinkedIn, decided to try it here.
Actual final day as a Full-Time Disney Leader.
Live like you mean it!
dad
Book review…
“When you read something that rings true, you realize you have known it for a long time. But like too many aspects of our lives, we forget the important truths as we deal with the effects of our immediate, and often unimportant, challenges. Jeff’s book, through engaging and concise chapters, provides that checklist of important truths that will encourage us to love getting up each morning to see where our mid life (or later life or early life!) celebration will lead us. This is a book that will guide you at any age, but please don’t wait to get any older to read it!”
World-class storytelling…the one you tell with your victory over regret.
World-class storytelling…the story you tell with your victory over regret.
dad
Did you watch, and love, Pixar’s SOUL? Fantastic Disney storytelling. It documents one person’s Mid Life Celebration. What if the Universe invented wakeup calls for transformation, not destruction? Here’s another book review…
“This is a truly inspiring and light hearted book that brings us back to what we know but may have been too busy with life to focus on and think about. Those values in life that help us see the beauty and strength in ourselves, others and the world. Two statements resonate very strongly with me from this book – “Life is not a dress rehearsal”, and “Hello, may I please speak to the owner of your life?” Two very simple statements, yet they speak volumes and can refresh my soul every time I think of them. And they relate to so many aspects of life.
Thank you Jeff for the inspiration, it is a truly upliftng book!”
5.0 out of 5 stars
Life is not a dress rehearsal – A Must Read!
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 1, 2014
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This website is about our MIND. To read today’s post about our BODY, click here.
Disney Holiday Passport, 2016. Writing today from Epcot.
What you are about to read was written years ago. It is part of my Disney Leadership Insights book. It is randomly being shared today…
What’s the difference between training and development?
Training to meet customer expectations:
Trainers
Procedures
Manuals
Objective evaluations
Compliance
Development to exceed customer expectations:
Leaders
No procedures
No manuals
Subjective evaluation
Commitment
We lump these two entirely different tools together as “Training and Development”.
Why is that dangerous?
Lost opportunity.
Easy opportunity.
Lost.
Leaders, which team will win, a well-trained and compliant team, or an amazingly developed and committed team?
When was the last time you developed yourself?
Remind me again how i know if i developed myself?
You did something you’ve never done before.
You were entirely out of your comfort zone.
You made and pursued a lofty goal, and in succeeding or failing, you grew.
You had a surprising, delightful epiphany about your abilities.
You make being out of your comfort zone your new comfort zone.
Got it?
PS. You didn’t read a manual, you didn’t attend a class, and you didn’t follow your normal routine.
Specific examples of development
When Nicole pulled you (a business owner) aside and said, “You’re a great manager, but not a great leader.”
When i told you (a chief executive) to share your vision and you pushed back.
Coaching. There are a million ways to coach.
Mentoring. There are a million ways to mentor.
Feedback. There are a million ways to provide feedback.
Opportunity. Seven months as the Grand Floridian Guest Satisfaction Measurement Champion for 1,400 Cast Members and 100 salaried leaders. An example of unintentional development. My boss didn’t do this to develop me. There was a need and i was the one my boss’s boss thought was the best fit.
Two sentences in a regularly scheduled meeting with my boss: “Jeff, not everyone on the executive team likes you. When we’re in meetings, just zip it.” This was literally the best development i received in 15 years at Disney Institute. Bottomline, a negative blind spot revealed can be career altering.
A comment from a boss’s observation that you never knew before. My boss, a different one than above, finally observed a co-facilitated engagement and said, “Jeff, you really command the room.” No one had ever said that to me. Bottomline, a positive blind spot revealed can be career altering.
Being brave. Some big obvious examples. Publishing a book while at Disney. Starting an LLC, six years before retiring from Disney. Overcoming addiction midway through my 30-year Disney career.
Being authentic, at the risk of being perceived unfavorably, running my speaking and advisory business differently than literally every other successful speaker. No speaking videos, no email collection, no testimonials, no fancy website, and walking away from any gig that doesn’t meet my (big-league) high, minimum speaking price.
You know how many speakers walk away from a fee well over $15k for a keynote? Repeatedly? Not many.
The whole point of development is to do one thing brilliantly.
To move a highly trained, professional team of compliant employees to an unstoppable team of fully committed, heart-and-soul-on-fire employees.
Please don’t over-think this.
The 19 organizational blueprints are meant to be the starting point. Simple. Fundamental. Foundational.
Drawings – the ideas, concepts, tenants of your organization – are the easy part.
Constructing a cathedral will take many people and will take a long time.
But once built, will be beautiful and functional and the benchmark by which others aspire to build.
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This website is about our MIND. To read today’s post about our BODY, click here.
