Walt Disney Research Paper

“Over time, grit is what separates fruitful lives from aimlessness.” (John Ortberg) In her TedTalk about perseverance and grit, Angela Lee Duckworth made a similar statement to Ortberg’s saying, “...One characteristic emerged as a significant predictor of success. It wasn’t social intelligence, it wasn’t good looks, physical health, and it wasn’t IQ: It was grit.” Her statement meant that naturally smart, social, good-looking people are not necessarily going to be more successful in life than others. Rather, Duckworth wanted to send the message that anyone, regardless of their circumstances, could lead a fruitful, prosperous life if they worked hard and stuck to their goals. The idea that hard work and perseverance will lead to success can …show more content…
One of these hardworking people was Walt Disney, the founder of the Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney Studios, Walt Disney Records, Disneyland, and more. Throughout his life and career, Disney demonstrated many examples of his grittiness. To illustrate, in 1923, one of Disney’s first companies, Laugh-O-Gram, plunged into a deep debt. Despite the fact that Walt and his brother Roy had to declare bankruptcy, they did not lose sight of their dreams of spreading joy throughout the world. The brothers combined their money and moved to Hollywood with their friend, Ub Iwerks, to start the successful Disney Brothers’ Studio. Additionally, a few years after founding the Disney Brothers’ Studio, Roy and Walt discovered their partner, Margaret Winkler, had stolen the rights to some of Disney’s cartoons. Instead of giving up with their careers right then and there, Walt and Roy began working on cartoons with a character called Mickey Mouse. However, when looking for a company to produce the cartoons featuring Mickey Mouse, Disney was turned down by MGM Studios after they told him that a giant mouse on screen would terrify audiences. Despite this harsh criticism, Walt pushed and pushed for his cartoons to be produced. Many of his cartoons, including the ever-popular “Steamboat Willie” became instant hits. Even though he influenced the world of arts, Walt Disney has been just …show more content…
For example, Edison grew up without receiving a formal education, but despite that, he still worked hard to become one of the brightest inventors in the world. Before successfully inventing the electric light bulb, Edison faced numerous issues with his first ideas and models. However, instead of giving up, he learned from his mistakes to better his invention. One of Edison’s earliest ideas was to make a bulb with a platinum filament. Yet, platinum was too slow to oxidize and had a high melting point. To fix this, Edison created a complex mechanism that would move the current away from the filament so it could cool down. Despite his efforts, this idea was just as poor since this type of light bulb was difficult to produce and would occasionally shut off, which went against its purpose to provide light. Although, Edison did not give up. He learned from this idea and experimented with other metals to perfect his invention. Another problem he faced was that in December of 1914, Edison’s laboratory burnt down. Instead of freaking out and giving up with his work, Edison calmly watched the flames and then said that he’d start over with his work, once the flames had been extinguished. Thus, although Thomas Edison faced many setbacks in his inventing career, he maintained his impeccable grittiness and kept working towards