Book Review on ‘How To Be Like Walt’ by Pat Williams with Jim Denney

Imagination, honesty, perseverance, optimism, and vision – these are words if someone were to describe Walt Disney in a nutshell. He was well-known as an animator, film maker, and entrepreneur, and best-known for The Walt Disney Company and it's theme parks and resorts that foster creativity among their cast members and imagineers.

My projects span through various subjects and themes. To tell a story, my art captures the essence of a landscape and expressing a moment of sorrow among the many complexities of human emotion. My inspirations reflect my quirkiness, curious nature, a shy introverted approach. I like learning...things, to put it lightly. As a young mouseketeer, I was curious about everything from both performing and visual arts to in the sciences, particularly biology and chemistry. I dabbled into number crunching, but I also loved poetry. Choosing the arts as a companion allowed for expression of the beauty and inspiration that I found in the world.

During the time I spent cultivating diverse perspectives to infuse my art with cultural influences, I stumbled upon a list of ‘Must Reads.’ The list consisted of many books that give tips on how to be successful with money or career. Topics of thought revolved around creating startups, or developing an entrepreneurial mindset, finding ways to influence people. One of the books on the list was ‘How to Be Like Walt’ by Pat Williams with Jim Denney, and it sparked my interest. As until I read the book thoroughly, I only saw Walt Disney as the man whose name magically appeared because of Tinkerbell’s pixie dust on every Disney movie and their merchandise.

However, ‘How to Be Like Walt’ shone like a piece of gold. There is more to ‘How to Be Like Walt’ than simple step-by-step how-to tutorials on starting a business; it gives readers a look at how to view Walt Disney’s strengths and efforts that he put in the Walt Disney Company for them to apply his experiences into their own endeavors. The book takes an in depth view at the ways Walt Disney overcame failures and hardships, using his leadership abilities to spark a sense of community and devotion to his creative ideas.

When on a journey of artistic exploration, especially to spark imagination in others, there are bumps in the road. There were times where Walt Disney's character and perseverance were tested. For instance, Walt Disney is the creator of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, as Oswald was the predecessor to the many famous Disney characters. As a result of the fine print of a contract and a nasty falling out, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit fell under the legal ownership of Charles Mintz and Universal Pictures.

Walt Disney did not fight for the rights to Oswald. He did not get mad, nor did he get even. Instead, this shortcoming lead to the creation if Mickey Mouse, the wonderful, funny, inspiring character that fellow Disney Enthusiasts know and love today. However, Walt Disney did warned Charles Mintz of the sketchiness of the situation. Walt Disney was slighted and eventually Charles Mintz experienced the same treatment.

The Oswald the Luck Rabbit experience is but one example of Walt Disney’s character and perseverance. Noting Walt’s attitude toward his experience, after reviewing the contract that he signed, and having Oswald taken away from him, he learned from his mistake; he took what he experienced to foster more creativity. The creation of Mickey Mouse is an artistic piece that reflects one of Disney's unique perspective of life.

Also, Walt Disney isn’t portrayed as this grandiose man that succeeded any metaphysical norms. He wasn’t particularly virtuous, nor was he this vile conniving lesser creature, trying to con people out of money. Looking at the Forward by Art Linkletter at the beginning of the book, he makes a point of how he made an impression as this humble, friendly person. He was someone that encouraged others to improve their work and themselves. “…If you failed, you’d better not shift the blame to others. Walt was never easygoing about failure. But if you took a chance and failed, he wouldn’t fire you or berate you. He wanted you to learn and grow from the experience” pg 105, Wendell Warner former Disney Engineer. Walt aspired to give more to people than what they paid for. It reflected in a lot of Disney projects, including the evolution of their animations and stories. [I suppose] the concept of ‘plussing’ was sort of the beginning of ‘Disney Magic.’ And the practice of creating Magic Moments is still alive at the Parks. Avid park goers always found themselves experiencing a little more happiness when experiencing a Magic Moment.

Pat Williams also takes a look at Walt Disney’s creative process in developing his films. As a creative on an artistic journey, Disney's work diversified and evolved along with immerging technology. Disney’s early work such as the Snow White and Seven Dwarfs, highlight how much their animation improved from their Silly Symphonies shorts, such as the Goddess of Spring. “Walt had a simple philosophy; ‘Get the job done, but never sacrifice quality.’ It was always about plussing. He often told us, ‘You worry about the quality. Let me worry about the cost.’” – Orlando Ferrante, Disney Theme Park Designer, pg 172.

            Even still, Walt Disney did not have his share of difficulties on his journey. Along with his brother Roy Disney, the business mind behind the company, Walt had to work through the losses of Pinocchio and Fantasia, works that flopped when they reached the box office Workers went on strike in 1941 because they were getting laid off. There were members that lost faith in Walt. Things turned around for Disney for a bit however, with the release of Dumbo, in 1941. “The movie tugs at our emotions because we all identify with Dumbo, the little circus elephant who is always tripping over his big ears and making a mess of things” pg 150. Part of Dumbo’s success is that it was about a character people emphasized with, and Disney derived their inspiration from such a complexity of human emotion.

From an artistic perspective, there’s more to this book than just a mere how-to on how to be successful the way that Walt Disney was. His work are pieces that reflect who he is. He’s had experiences that shaped him, influences and people that stuck with through the harder times trying to bring his vision into reality.