7 Powerful Quotes by Walt Disney that Help You Succeed
“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”
Walt Disney’s body was frozen when he died so he could be reanimated in the future.
At least, that’s the rumor that spread following Disney’s death in December 1966. It’s one that survived nearly six decades, even spawning an unauthorized film about his frozen head.
Cultural icons like Disney, Elvis, and John F. Kennedy have a way of spawning rumors and conspiracy theories when they die. And as interesting as those theories are to entertain, they’re usually nowhere near as interesting as the real people.
Take Walt Disney for example. He founded the company bearing his name, turned animation into a serious art form, and invented the modern theme park. He faced bankruptcy, betrayal, and corporate strikes throughout his career–yet he was beloved by millions around the world.
Through the ups and downs of his life, Disney left us with great wisdom for chasing and achieving our dreams.
Here are 7 of Walt Disney’s most powerful quotes that will help you succeed.
“When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable.”
It’s difficult to believe in something all the way because you’re only one click away from finding an opposing view on the internet.
But exposure to different perspectives can make your belief stronger if you aren’t too afraid to let them in. When you choose a path or make a decision, commit to it all the way but allow room for changes based on new information. But don’t let critics or alternate narratives change your basic belief.
The world needs more people committed to what they believe.
“Somehow I can’t believe there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secret of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C’s. They are Curiosity, Confidence, Courage, and Constancy and the greatest of these is Confidence.”
Insecurity plagues everyone on some level.
An open mind, belief in your abilities, and boldness to stand out can take you to incredible places. But as Disney points out, if you don’t have confidence you won’t make it far. How do you increase your confidence?
Understanding and building on your strengths is a great place to start because most people don’t develop their natural gifts.
“It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.”
Finding and conquering meaningful challenges is one of life’s great pleasures.
Most people only go after goals they’re forced to pursue either for work or health reasons. But a major component to a meaningful life is choosing goals that move you further along. It’s even better when your goals are big enough that they force you to stretch and grow.
Nothing beats the feeling of making progress toward a goal that once looked impossible.
“All the adversity I’ve had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me… You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.”
You might think your life would be better without challenges. But in reality, it would be so boring you’d get depressed.
Nobody intentionally seeks out adversity, but when it comes you have a choice of how to meet it. You can hide and hope it goes away, or you can face it with courage and faith. The way you respond to adversity is more important than how often you succeed.
Troubles and obstacles will shape you in ways that make you successful in the future.
“If you can visualize it, if you can dream it, there’s some way to do it.”
Studies show there’s a lot of power in visualization.
Seeing an outcome in your mind and feeling it in your body increases the chances you’ll achieve success. But too many people get stuck on visualization because it’s easy and pleasurable. If you don’t act on what you imagine, visualization is a waste of time.
No matter how impossible your dreams may seem, if you can see it can become your reality–just ask the Wright brothers.
“The more you like yourself, the less you are like anyone else, which makes you unique.”
You can’t follow someone else’s path to success.
That might sound obvious. But most of us try at some point to be a successful person we admire. You can get caught up in the nuances of someone else’s path to success, but your path will deviate significantly from anyone else’s. It’s great to take inspiration from others (like this article) but you can’t be them.
Think about it, when some up-and-comer gets labeled “the next Steve Jobs,” or the next anyone, what happens? They rarely amount to much.
“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”
So much of life comes down to courage.
No one said it better than Winston Churchill: “Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality that guarantees all others.” It takes a great deal of courage to try, and even more to get up and try again after failure. Dreams are highly personal, so it can be hard to step out and chase them when there is no certainty of the outcome.
Life is everything you dare to make it.
If you can find the courage to try in the face of fear and failure, you have no idea where your dreams can take you. Tomorrow can be better than today.
