On July 16th, 1954, Walt Disney’s Disneyland construction began and was underway. Disney had set an ambitious goal for the park to be completed and up and running in a year. The crew of 9,000 workers needed to clear 180 acres and build the world's first modern theme park complete with storytelling and an immersive experience for guests.

That’s quite the undertaking for such an important endeavor, but Walt Disney knew something that we could all apply to decision making. By constraining time, and setting ambitious goals, things would get done more promptly, and the expansion of work into time allowed (Parkinson’s Law) would adjust to the time given. Said differently, Disney was aggressive with the timeframe to force action and completion. The park opened on July 17th, 1955.

​Salvador Alvarenga and his shipmate, Ezequiel Córdoba departed the shores of Costa Azul, Mexico on November, 12th, 2012.

438 days later, Alvanregna landed haphazardly on the shores of the Marshall Islands, alone, scalded with sunburn, tattered and haggard, but alive after being lost at sea. The 25 foot fishing boat had been caught in several days of extreme weather conditions off the coast of Mexico, blown off course with no intentions of being castaway that far from shore.

The story is incredible for many reasons, but a standout lesson is what comes from how he survived.

On deck, Alvarenga and Córdoba took shelter underneath a propped up icebox that they had brought with them to store fish. Temporarily shaded throughout the day, they used it as a makeshift shelter. With a lifetime of fisherman experience, they cast makeshift lines and lures into the Pacific Ocean to catch fish…and most importantly…lure seagulls and other birds to land on top of their icebox umbrella.

Constrained in almost every respect, the two men would occasionally use their bare hands to stealthily catch the perched birds, break their wings to keep them alive, and when needed, cut the birds throats to drink a precious resource on an open ocean; the nutrient rich blood.

You don’t need to be opening a world renowned theme park, or be lost at sea to learn some valuable lessons here.

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This week, I challenge you to soak in the small moments over the gift of having a prepared meal that fills you up and tastes good. I challenge you to condense your timeframes, set ambitious goals, and force yourself into tighter time blocks to get things done.

I think you’ll find that being constrained not only allows you to get more creative, it allows you to accomplish more too.

Thanks for reading as always. Time to win the week. See you soon.

– J

PS: If this resonated, it would mean a lot if you shared this newsletter with just one friend. There’s a quiet community of people striving to get better every day—and we’d love to have them along for the ride.

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​Valiance Counseling & Coaching, 99 Cherry St, Milford, CT
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