The person I really researched this week was Walt Disney. Did you know that Walt Disney was once told he lacked creativity? They even fired him from a newspaper over it. The biggest creative mind of our time had more struggles than just that. In fact, it seemed he had one set back after another but each time something better came out of each struggle.
Walt’s young life was very difficult and all of his brothers
ran away at a young age. Walt even lied
about his age so he could begin driving an ambulance during World War I. Because of the struggles of his childhood, he
wanted a place where families could enjoy happy times together and that is how
he came up with the idea for Disneyland.
He began a small movie company called Laugh-O-Gram films that
created animated films. Unfortunately,
due to high labor costs and Walt’s poor business skills, the company went
bankrupt and Walt lost everything.
With only $40 and a few clothes he moved to Hollywood to
become an actor. Obviously, he never
made it, but he and his brother Roy realized that there were no animation
businesses in Hollywood. So they gave it
a go. There he created Oswald the Rabbit
for Universal Studios in New York City. It
was very successful, but after a trip to NYC, he found out that Universal
Studios had somehow obtained ownership of Oswald the Rabbit. Not to mention, they had also contracted all
of his workers out from under him, except one, Ub Iwerks. It was on his train ride home that he got the
idea for Mickey Mouse. Ub Iwerks ended
up drawing Mickey Mouse and Walt was the voice of the character.
Off and on throughout his career, Walt experienced stress
and depression. He spent many sleepless
nights. He would get angry with his
workers. Other times he would burst out
in tears at the drop of a hat. People
encouraged him to take his wife on a vacation.
He expected to go on a voyage down the Mississippi River, but due to the
Great Depression the trip on the boat was cancelled. Years later, days before Disneyland opened,
he took his wife on a ride on the Mark Twain Steamboat. Most likely the ride was based on his desire
and inability to ride a steamboat many years before.
With the success of Snow
White and the Seven Dwarfs, Walt and Roy built a house in California for their
parents. But it was built with poor
construction. Walt attempted to have his
studio workmen repair it, but one morning they found their mother had died that
night from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Walt often said, "Get a good idea, and stay with it. Dog
it, and work at it until it's done, and done right." It would have been easy for Walt to give up
many, many times. However, every time
life gave him lemons he seemed to learn how to make lemonade. Walt Disney even said, “You may not realize
it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world
for you.” His kicks in the teeth
certainly provided some pretty great things.
These qualities are an inspiration for me and help remind me that
sometimes you fail, but it is important to keep on trying. Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do
something.
My $100 challenge business is over. I was able to find a new person to donate to. Her name is Nigora from Tajikstan and I was able to finish funding her request for $125 to buy a embroidery machine for her home dress making business. I hope that it helps her grow her business with this loan and find success in her country. I put the remaining amount plus a little more towards a Kiva.org donation.
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