June 22

In 1966, Walt Disney announced his vision for EPCOT through a series of videos. For those who have visited Disney World, you know EPCOT as just another in a series of Disney parks containing exhibits for coun- tries around the world and its own rides. However, this wasn’t his orig- inal intent.

In his promotional videos, Disney exclaimed a vision of a futur- istic city (EPCOT stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow), with people living, working, and creating in an enormous planned community. Transportation would be accomplished via the “people mover,” which is still in use at the park today. It was an ambi- tious vision and one that would fall short. After his death, the company decided that Disney’s plans for a “city of tomorrow” were simply not practical and would distract from other business interests. They were shelved until the early 1980s, when a less ambitious EPCOT was opened to the public.

I am deeply inspired by Walt Disney’s vision of possibility. At a time when he could have focused solely on growing his successful entertain- ment interests, he was dreaming about how to change the conversation around city planning. He was tackling the problem of urban sprawl. He was thinking bigger.

It’s easy to become obsessed with the work in front of you, but I challenge you today to think bigger about your role in the world. How can you expand your view of what’s possible?

Dream big. You won’t get everything, but you’ll come closer than if you aim for “reasonable.”

QUESTION

is there a big vision you have that scares you?