|
This is the story about my real passion in life.
July 1998.
It all started when I was sitting on the concrete sidewalk in Walt Disney World in Florida waiting for the spectromagic parade to go past.... I was thinking "come on", not knowing what was about to arrive having never seen a parade every before!
As the music started the hairs raised up on the back of my neck, something had come alive within me. As the parade was going past it hit me like lightning. I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I wanted to be part of the team which make the magic happen! I know I can.
When I got home from Florida, I told my Dad. "One day I'll work for Disney, and make the magic happen". Little did I know what lay ahead in many ways.
I worked for a company based in the UK, creating control systems for the petrochemical industry and rotating machine markets, but I knew what I wanted to do. I had never had this determination before....
I sent an email to human resources of walt disney imagineering, to see if there were any jobs. I didn't get anything back... arrrgh!
What now, I thought. Surely they could understand the desire within someone to create the magic. Little did I know of the corporate machine I was standing next to.
Oct 28th 1998 @ 9:50am (approx.)
The world stopped..... my Dad died..... why? He was taken from me when I needed him most. This was my darkest hour.
I never really got over that... time does heal, but it doesn't bring him back.
I now knew what I had to do.... work for Disney Imagineering... it's what I had told Dad, but how????? The US immigration system had never ever crossed my mind, no immigration system had ever even occurred to me, other than always hearing getting into the UK seemed too easy.
June 1999
Now this is where it all goes crazy and surreal!
Someone from Walt Disney Imagineering contacted our company... needing show control for the new Disney Park in Paris - now remember our company never had done this before. "OH MY GOD!", having been to Florida and knowing the attractions they were talking about, and having a boss I got on with I got involved right from the start. All the time I was thinking, "this is destiny, please become true".
Well we won the contract, I hope due to Disney being impressed by something I did or maybe someone up above helping out.
Oct 1999
We start work on the Disney contract by traveling to California for a week. (Pinch me!) I still can't believe it is true. I get to visit the Imagineering offices, and meet some of the legends of Walt Disney Imagineering. We get to go backstage at Disneyland and DCA (during it's construction). All the years of work have enabled me to be here, and I still can't believe it. I met some people who have made the magic become reality for years and worked on all the attractions we all know! Real life imagineers with a passion that only people like me can understand! I got to visit the Imagineering shop in Los Angeles, and buy some memento.
We then travel to Florida I again meet even more imagineers, again some which have the same passion that I have. These are the true imagineers. I get to go backstage on the very attractions I rode on in July 1998.
I then get to go back to California for another Imagineering week (Pinch me again!). Here I met even more imagineers, and more true imagineers.
The contract is for 3 attractions in Paris, and then another 2 in Paris, and then another 1 in Paris. Yahoooooo! It was seriously hard work, but it appears I was born to create, the whole creative side of the engineering comes naturally for me, designing systems to cope with change is also part of my natural ability - and believe me many cannot - I've seen it. I pick up things very quickly and it can just make the magic happen. People used to say "I could make computers and control systems jump through hoops", nothing could stop me.
The contract was from Oct 1999 to Feb. 2002. Don't get me wrong I loved the work, but also during these years I meet some people which consider imagineering is "just a job", what a waste! Some people don't realize how lucky they are!
This was the best 3 years of my work life. I also got married in 2000, and my wife gave birth to our first son in Feb. 2002. (Soft opening for the Paris park).
I got to go back later in 2002, and work for two weeks in which I had a fantastic time. This time helping some more imagineers and meeting more great Disney people.
It was so nice to see people enjoy what I had been part of to create, it truly is fantastic.
During the period working for Disney in Paris I always kept my dream alive - one day, I thought to myself, one day.
When the contract finished I was distraught, back to my day job. I now didn't enjoy work at all, after such a fantastic time and working with so many great people and being part of the team which brings the magic alive was a very difficult act to follow - was this it? I thought, maybe this is what "working for Disney" had been and this was the end, but I wanted more. When people were talking about what they were going to work on next , I longed to be part of the Disney machine.... My drive to work for the mouse was now even greater.
I still contacted Disney whenever I felt it was a good time.... luckily now I had some contacts!!!! I contacted the main software group director in California... and it was good news .. there was a chance of a job ... I got to speak to some other people but I kept thinking I didn't want to work in California, I wanted Florida (the family had a house there) ... well this is where the US immigration system kicks into focus ... I ain' t got a hope. I want to work for Disney and pay tax, this appears to be not a good thing as the US seems to want family members in fluxing from around the world, or software engineers for Microsoft. The UK is not allowed to enter the visa-diversity lottery so that was a no go. So that was the end of that one.
A while passed..
Disney decided to make a Florida version of Stunt show... they contacted us ... but the pound was strong and the dollar weak making our price too much, local companies were available to do it. I really wanted to work on the project directly for Disney rather than as a vendor again anyway!
When we lost the order I was gutted so I contacted Disney and it just happened that I was holidaying in Florida at the same time the software group director from California was visiting Florida. Cool! I had an interview with him, and interview with his Florida counterpart, her direct reports, and talked about Stunt show.
A while passed...
One evening I was out with the boys cycling and when we got back the answer phone light was flashing.... Hi this is **** of walt disney human resources, ***** thinks you are the best candidate for the job, please call us back on *****. O.M.G. I've done it, I've achieved the unachievable, I've been accepted, only the best of the best get to work for Disney, and I've made it!!!!! I phoned only to be told I had no visa so there was basically no chance..... arrrrrggggghhhh! I went into overdrive, I contacted some high up people in Disney to see if they could help, they tried but to no avail. Basically if I could get a visa then I could get a job, otherwise no chance.
This was a real low point for me, I realized my dream was in tatters!
A long time passed.....
It was the year of dreams, so I contacted the head of HR for disney, I guessed the email address! He wrote back straight away..... I couldn't believe it.. he said someone would contact me.... well this become the new all time low... I was basically told they don't hire out of the US.... amazing they want the best talent in the world to make the best attractions in the world ... but only if you live in the US. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhh!!!!
So this is the story so far...
I so so so so want to get the job I was offered many years ago and for fill my destiny and dream.
Do I want to work for Disney so I can live in the US, or live in the US to work for Disney? The answer is simple, the latter. So if I could work for Disney based in the UK that would be cool, but to work and live in the same place would be best.
I really wish it was easier to emigrate to the US for people who genuinely want to work hard, but I can never see that changing. I also wish Disney HR would appreciate if you have exceptional skill and passion then you would make a fantastic employee.... we can all dream.
So if you want to earn your ears... remember never give up your dream, mine was so close, and these words should mean something to you .....
Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I'm through with playing by the rules
Of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes: and leap!
It's time to try
Defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye
I am defying gravity
And you wont bring me down!
I'm through accepting limits
''cause someone says they're so
Some things I cannot change
But till I try, I'll never know!
Too long I've been afraid of
Losing love I guess I've lost
Well, if that's love
It comes at much too high a cost!
I'd sooner buy
Defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye
I'm defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
And you wont bring me down! |
