The extra mile
How a little place in Florida does it so well...
We visit Disney World frequently. More frequently than many.
When I tell people that, yet again, we are making another pilgrimage to the house of the mouse, we get a variety of reactions. But often they live somewhere between confused and bemused. Weren’t you just there? Don’t you get tired of it?
And the answer to those questions is typically yes and no. And the main reason why those are the answers is not the rides, not the shows, not the wonder. But it’s a concept that you hear people talk about all the time in business, but rarely practice: the extra mile.
Over and over again, Disney cast members (that’s what they call their staff) are willing and happy to go the extra mile when asked.1 And we frequently ask. Our daughter’s special needs require a variety of accommodations for her to fully participate in the Disney experience.
The latest example came on Sunday. Among the many necessities we typically bring for our daughter is a Blendjet travel blender that allows us to purée her food so she can safely eat. On this particular trip, we were attempting to travel lighter (for several reasons, we were flying instead of our usual driving) and so we didn’t have it with us. So, we called ahead and asked if we brought food to the resort staff could they puree it? Yes, they could. Great! Blender stays home.
Bright and early Sunday morning, I ventured to the dining facility attached to our resort to ask if their culinary team could blend our can of chickpeas so our daughter could have them as part of her lunch (which typically also features sweet potatoes, leafy greens, and whole grains).
At first, it looked like their answer was going to be a no. They can’t bring outside food into the kitchen. A health code violation. You understand.
And I thought that would be the end of it.
But then the chef smiled and said “I have chickpeas. How much do you need? What consistency?“ He disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a full container of perfectly blended chickpeas, enough for our daughter to eat lunch for at least a few days. Then he smiled again, told me his name, asked how long we’d be staying, and said he would be around for another few days if we needed anything at all.
The extra mile.
There are many more stories like this that I could share just from our own experience. And there are hundreds if not thousands more out there, from families like ours with daughters, sons, wives, husbands, grandparents who need a little extra something to enjoy their day in the parks.
When people talk of “Disney magic,” this is it.
When Disney World calls itself “The Most Magical Place on Earth,” this is why.
And this is why we’ll be back.
❤️
Adam
And sometimes, even when they’re not asked. Like the time a piece of our daughter’s wheelchair came undone and, not only did their cast members offer duct tape and a flashlight to help my ever-resourceful wife repair it, they went and fetched us a yummy vegan frozen treat and offered us free passes to future rides that day. All of this even though the issue wasn’t at all their fault.
Simple caring and compassion = a welcome, maybe rare thing these days! Lovely story. I can see why you go back!