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  • The Ride of a Lifetime

  • Lessons in Creative Leadership from the CEO of the Walt Disney Company
  • Written by: Robert Iger
  • Narrated by: Robert Iger, Jim Frangione
  • Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (957 ratings)

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The Ride of a Lifetime

Written by: Robert Iger
Narrated by: Robert Iger,Jim Frangione
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Publisher's Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

The CEO of Disney, one of
Time's most influential people of 2019, shares the ideas and values he embraced to reinvent one of the most beloved companies in the world and inspire the people who bring the magic to life.

Robert Iger became CEO of The Walt Disney Company in 2005, during a difficult time. Morale had deteriorated, competition was intense, and technology was changing faster than at any time in the company's history. His vision came down to three clear ideas: Recommit to the concept that quality matters, embrace technology instead of fighting it, and think bigger?think global?and turn Disney into a stronger brand in international markets.

Fourteen years later, Disney is the largest, most respected media company in the world, counting Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm and 21st Century Fox among its properties. Its value is nearly five times what it was when Iger took over, and he is recognized as one of the most innovative and successful CEOs of our era.

In The Ride of a Lifetime, Robert Iger shares the lessons he's learned while running Disney and leading its 200,000 employees, and he explores the principles that are necessary for true leadership, including:

Optimism. Even in the face of difficulty, an optimistic leader will find the path toward the best possible outcome and focus on that, rather than give in to pessimism and blaming.

Courage. Leaders have to be willing to take risks and place big bets. Fear of failure destroys creativity.

Decisiveness. All decisions, no matter how difficult, can be made on a timely basis. Indecisiveness is both wasteful and destructive to morale.

Fairness. Treat people decently, with empathy, and be accessible to them.

This book is about the relentless curiosity that has driven Iger for forty-five years, since the day he started as the lowliest studio grunt at ABC. It's also about thoughtfulness and respect, and a decency-over-dollars approach that has become the bedrock of every project and partnership Iger pursues, from a deep friendship with Steve Jobs in his final years to an abiding love of the Star Wars mythology.

©2019 Robert Iger (P)2019 Penguin Audio

What listeners say about The Ride of a Lifetime

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Makes me never want to be an American CEO

To clarify, it was eye-opening.

You'd expect a CEO would have to make hard decisions, dream big and take huge risks. But what was a bit of a reality check was how much time and energy goes into massaging people's egos, and managing a Board with their own agenda, who criticize from an ivory tower without ever getting their hands dirty. The politics and games, especially those played with Disney's former CEO Micheal Eisner, left me somewhat unsettled. The median tenure for CEOs at large-cap (S&P 500) companies was 5 years as of 2017. That's absurd to me.

Overall, I preferred the second half of the book (which focused on Iger's leadership as CEO) to the first half (which focused on his long and bumpy road to the top, from a nobody at ABC). There are some amazing stories about the very difficult and far-reaching decisions he has had to make as CEO. Here's one I'll always remember: 30 mins before Disney was to announce their acquisition of Pixar, Jobs confided in Iger, telling him he has 4 years left at best. At which point Iger had to decide, on the spot, whether to call off the deal (a deal that he has fought his Board tooth and nail for), now knowing that Jobs was no longer part of the package for the long run (He goes ahead and the rest is history).

Iger's story is also a great case study on mergers and acquisitions. Every major decision he has made focused on three fundamental pillars of his strategic vision: generating the best creative content; fostering innovation and utilizing the latest technology; and expanding into new global markets. Content and IP, for example, are one of Disney's key to success. Disney characters make Disney what it is. Which is why Pixar, and it's ability to create immortal characters, (along with its cutting edge animation technology) made sense as an acquisition. Iconic Characters. The same thing that drew him to Marvel, and later, Lucasfilms. Because what can be more iconic than Star Wars and the Avengers? All these characters have extended to generate revenues across the Disney empire - from films, to TV, to theme parks, to licensing. And with every aquisition Iger is keenly aware of how to manage people, and how to retain the culture that made the company worth acquiring in the first place.

There's a lot more in there on leadership lessons in a creative world. It's a really lovely read. I strongly recommend it.

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Great Audiobook. loved the simplicity and lessons

Great Audiobook. loved the simplicity and lessons.
The persistence is my take away, good things take time, don't give up.

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Inspiring read.

Amazing read, the story telling is compelling and spell bound, forces you to finish the book.

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Great story telling

Loved the part especially about how Robert’s friendship with Steve Jobs developed when he showed courage facing his fears. At the end, it’s how you face life!

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Exemplified patience and strong will

Loved the story of Robert's humble beginnings to becoming the top executive at Disney. it's great to read how characteristics like humility, respect, compassion and faith in self and subordinates can take someone to unimaginable heights.

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Excellent insight into the mind of a leader

Loved the book. Gives an inside view of how capable people in positions of responsibility think and act. The story of Bob along with the recent growth of Disney is captivating.

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great learning

wonderful book which teaches people which leaders to follow. how to be humble and visionary at the same time

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good one

I loved it. it was a good read. His leadership approach is simple but so powerful

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Awesome read!

Loved it!
There’s a lot to learn from this book for leaders from all walks of life.

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Amazing book! Must read!!!

Best leadership book came across so far! Don’t miss! Would like to meet author if ever get a chance!

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