100 Days of Wonder – #12

Me on the day we left Disney World in January 2023. I am always slightly reluctant to return to reality and I have also usually forgotten how to be a responsible adult. I also always need a little while to readjust to ‘normal’ customer service because Disney level customer service is another level altogether. I don’t really understand how they do it but every interaction we have ever had with any cast member has been perfect. For the duration of the interaction they make you feel like you are the most important person in the world. That’s not to say that things have not gone wrong, they have, but the interactions are always so so good. I wish I could fully pin point the magic of that and try and bring it to my interactions. I think it is something about being fully present in the interaction, about not being distracted by the last one or the one that comes next or what’s for dinner or what spreadsheet needs filling in. It’s about understanding people in a split second, about engaging with them right where they are in the moment and it’s about never ever passing people from pillar to post. Having experienced what is possible I now often watch in restaurants, cafes and other customer service contexts and am bemused by how inefficient and bad it often is. People remember how you make them feel and Disney World makes me feel special, seen and cared for in just the right way. I hope that just sometimes at least, my colleagues and students feel even just some of that in our interactions.