Did You Know Walt Disney Was Rejected 300 Times For Mickey Mouse And His Theme Park
We have all been rejected. That is life. Some of us use that rejection to push us on and take motivation from us, but for others, it can be demoralising.
Disney has become one of the strongest brands globally, and indeed one of America’s most profitable companies.
However, “The Happiest Place On Earth” was not an easy or clear road to success. Rumour has it that the concept for one of the most visited tourist sites and theme parks in North America was turned down over 300 times by bankers and financiers.
Being an entrepreneur can be a truly lonely place, often filled with doubt and even depression. For those out there struggling to find their motivation to continue with their dream and vision, Walt Disney can serve as potential inspiration as one of the 20th Century’s most extraordinary visionaries.
After Disney’s first carton business failed in the early 1920s he packed his bags to try his hand at acting in Los Angeles. Disney failed at this too but did create Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, which was his first version of what eventually became Mickey Mouse.
Disney lived off eating beans whilst racking up debts and supposedly had a breakdown after creating Mickey Mouse.
Walt Disney has a vision and without perseverance for this, the Walt Disney Company would not be the company it has become today. With Walt Disney world spanning multiple theme parks across thousands of hectares in Florida, and the Disneyland theme park stretching from locations in Los Angeles to Hong Kong and Tokyo, the idea has been a resounding success.
The irony is that one of the 20th Century’s most creative visionaries was actually fired for lacking creativity from his local newspaper many years before. The Kansas City Star newspaper was later bought by Disney when they purchased ABC.
Disney World in Orlando has now grown to become the largest single-site employer in the U.S. and with a group income above $50 billion annually, it would be hard to argue against the incredible success that The Disney Company and theme parks have seen since Walt Disney’s initial rejections.
Sadly, Walt Disney died in 1966 and never got to see the opening of the mammoth Walt Disney World in Florida which opened in 1971 to become what it is today. The park would have never seen the light of day had Disney not persevered after 300 rejections from financiers for the Mickey Mouse concept that started this incredible journey.