The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons in Creative Leadership from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company

by Robert Iger

the personal component of each of these deals was going to make or break them, and authenticity was crucial.

as a general rule, I don’t like to lay out problems without offering a plan for addressing them.

populating boards with people who are not only wise and confident in their opinions, but also have direct and relevant experience of current market dynamics.

“management by press release”—meaning that if I say something with great conviction to the outside world, it tends to resonate powerfully inside our company.

responding in a timely way and being thoughtful about any issues brought to me by my direct reports—returning phone calls and replying to emails, making the time to talk through specific problems, being sensitive to the pressures people are feeling.

Are high-quality branded products likely to become even more valuable in a changed marketplace? How do we deliver our products to consumers in more relevant, more inventive ways? What new habits of consumption are being formed, and how do we adapt to them? How do we deploy technology as a powerful new tool for growth instead of falling victim to its disruption and destruction?

you can accumulate so much power in a job that it becomes harder to keep a check on how you wield it.

people know you’ll hear them out, that you’re emotionally consistent and fair-minded, and that they’ll be given second chances for honest mistakes.

True integrity—a sense of knowing who you are and being guided by your own clear sense of right and wrong—is a kind of secret leadership weapon.