When you are searching for people to add to your staff, you have to have a wide approach.

Don’t just post a job opening and hope the right person applies.

Finding the right person starts long before you have a job opening. Having the right contacts and relationships with a wide variety of people can lead you to the right person, so it is a good idea to meet people across different industries and professions.

At Disney World, we would carry a card to give to people we think would be a good fit at Disney.

Focus on getting well known in your community. Have a good relationship with high schools and colleges.

One of the best sources of new employees is right in front of you. Good people bring good people into the organization. If you have good employees already, turn to them to get referrals.

When it comes to hiring the right people, create obstacles in your interview process. Never judge the size of the obstacle. Consider their thinking process and the motivation behind their actions. Carol Quinn is the authority when it comes to hiring. Check out her book Don’t Hire Anyone Without Me.

You may also consider including a scenario or a task in the interview process. For example, you may want to have a chef make a hamburger as part of the interview process.

Emergencies are the extreme example of finding out how well you have done in delegating authority.

When you have an emergency you have no time for anyone to wonder what they should do and what responsibility they have. You have to sort it out before you have a problem.

You don’t plan what to do in a tornado when you hear the tornado siren.

Think about what could go wrong. Work through the scenarios and determine who will do what task. Part of the planning for handling an emergency is to talk to people so they know what they will be doing. Everyone needs to know their role ahead of time. And don’t delegate a responsibility to someone who won’t be able to handle it.

Gather your team in a room and discuss different emergencies you could face. If you need inspiration, pull out a recent newspaper and pull headline to talk through it. What would you do if that situation happened to your organization?

Anticipate what can happen and then have your team work through the scenario. Reflect what other organizations have done to minimize the emergency.

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The morning Magic planner will help spend 15 powerful minutes each morning setting the right course.

If you don’t plan where you are going, how are you going to get there?

Just like putting coordinates in your GPS. Know where you are going so you can get there.

No matter how big or small your organization is, your customers all have the same expectations;

Make me feel special

Treat me as an individual

Respect me

Have knowledgeable employees

Now, go through these four expectations with your team and figure out how you can master them. You will have to be deliberate to master these four areas. Discuss each expectation individually and figure out what it means for you and your organization.

If you master these four expectations you will stand out from the competition. Customers will become so loyal they won’t even think about going to the competition.

Have you ever been in a situation at work where it seemed like it was Us versus Them?

When you find this situation it often comes in the form of field staff vs. office staff.

The problem comes from the top. This happens because the CEO lets it happen. Or, in a public agency, the Director or CEO equivalent.

Al Weiss used to say there would not be any silos at Disney World. And if there were, someone would not be in their silo anymore because he would remove them.

It is the responsibility of the leader to create a culture where everyone works together, appreciates each other, and realizes everyone has a hard job.

If an organization has let Us vs. Them creep into a culture, one way to address the situation is to have the office staff work in operations. Give people the exposure and experience to understand what happens in other jobs. Once you understand the work other people are doing you will begin to appreciate them more.

When your people begin not working together the focus shifts away from the customer. Everyone needs to work towards the same purpose.

Every day this situation continues it chips away at the culture of your organization. There is a lot at stake. Great people will leave the organization to work at a place with a better culture. Over time you are left with average

When you lose a customer, is it possible to win them back?

Yes, it is possible, but don’t even try to win a customer back unless you are ready to have them back.

They left you for a reason. Fix the issue that caused them to leave in the first place. Only then, should you try to win a customer back.

And when you know you are ready to have them back, treat them like a VIP (very individual person). If you are in a position to do so, go see him or her in person. Don’t settle for sending an email or text message. Definitely, don’t wait for them to come to see you. It won’t happen. And it is your responsibility to fix it. Own your mistake, face to face.

Once I was an hour late for a speech. Immediately I told my customer I would deduct $5,000 from the speaking fee. They didn’t ask for the fee reduction. They didn’t expect it. But it was the right thing to do. I didn’t serve the customer to the level I should have. It needed to be handled professionally.

Professionals want to take a bad situation and make it right.

So if you want to win a customer back, you need to fix the problem first. Then be professional and personal. You might win the customer back.

Often, people ask me how to stand out in their job.

Perhaps they want to know a secret. Something no one has told them before. But it is no secret. Most people know what to do, but they don’t.

If you want to stand out, focus on the basics. If you focus on these five things, you will stand out above anyone else you work with;

First impressions are important.

Be an expert in something

Find a way to get better every day.

Add value above what is expected of you.

Have a great attitude.

Be better than everyone else. Get to work early, raise your hand to take on the hard tasks, work when your boss needs you to work, be willing to do long stretches of hard work when it is necessary.

To give a simple answer…raise your expectations for your performance. Now try to meet those expectations. Keep expecting more of yourself.

If you want to hear more on this topic, listen to this episode of the Jody Maberry Show. I also contribute some insight on that episode.

In this episode, we mention Magical Vacation Planner. If you want to take a trip to Disney, you will want to talk to them. You can even fill out this form to get more information.

Want to create a magic environment around you? Start with gratitude.

When you are around someone who is grateful, you can feel it, can’t you?

I used to think about what I didn’t have and complain about it. At some point in my career, I became more grateful for what I do have. You know what, life became more enjoyable.

When you are grateful for what you have, you begin to treat people better. People around you seem to be happier. It is like taking magic with you everywhere you go.

Gratitude is not limited to individuals. Organizations can be grateful, too. At Disney and Marriott, leaders go out of their way to make sure people matter and know they matter. Disney is the cast members. We appreciate them and in turn, cast members appreciate Disney.

Gratitude in your organization begins with you. Even if you are not at the top of the organizational chart, you can intervene and make the environment around you better.

Too often, when we have a bad employee, we assume we made a great hire and something then went wrong with the employee. The truth is, you made a bad hire.

It is hard to admit, but it is true.

In this episode of Creating Disney Magic, we talk candidly about hiring and firing.

If you want to build a great culture, you have to face the truth about bad hires and put an end to it.

In this episode, we reference Carol Quinn and her book, Don’t Hire Anyone Without Me.

To go deeper in this topic, listen to this interview I did with Carol Quinn on the Jody Maberry Show.

If you want to find out more about the upcoming event in Orlando, CLICK HERE.

Getting fired can feel like a big deal. It can feel like a blow to your confidence and your career.

When I was younger, I took a job I shouldn’t have and it led to me getting fired.

It felt awful, of course. But it turned out to be the best thing that happened to me.

One thing you are concerned about after getting fired is if it has ruined your reputation.

After I was fired, I was hired by Marriott. They did not care I had been fired. Next, I was recruited by Disney. By then, having been fired was a non-issue.

If you have been fired, don’t worry about taking the hit. Your career is long. Get up and get back at it.

When you apply for your new job, be honest. Face what happened. More people have been fired than you expect.

When I interview people, it doesn’t bother me if someone has been fired or quit a job.

Walt Disney was a dreamer. Some would say he was unrealistic. Some would say he was unreasonable.

But without his dreams, there would be no Mickey Mouse. No Snow White. No Disneyland or Disney World.

If you have big dreams, people are going to tell you that you can’t do it or you are being unrealistic.

Remember, when someone tells you something can’t be done, they are talking about their limitations, not yours. Don’t listen to them. Take your shot so you don’t have regrets later in life.

People who create change don’t listen to the negative people. Block them out and find ways to make things happen.