What do you actually do in Disney?

This is a question I keep getting A LOT so I decided to answer it for y'all. My role is Quick Service Food & Beverage and I work at Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn & Cafe in the Magic Kingdom. At Pecos, there are a ton of different positions I'm trained in including:

1. Magical Moments- walking around the dining room and celebrating celebrations with guests
2. Greeter- welcoming everyone to Pecos and thanking them for joining us
3. Filler- filling food orders
4. Drinks- filling drink orders
5. Counter Stocker- making sure the counter has everything they need
6. Close Counter- cleaning everythinggggg foreverrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
7. Topping Bar- making sure all of our toppings are available to our guests
8. Topping Bar Runner- making sure the topping bar people have everything they need
9. Topping Bar Close- cleaning the topping bar
10. Condiments and Trays- making sure all of the condiments are stocked
11. Trays- picking up all of the dirty trays
12. Condiment Bar Close- wrapping everything up and cleaning
13. Dining Room Busser- cleaning tables as guests leave
14. Dining Room- Floors- sweeping
16. Trash- emptying trash
17. Dining Room Concierge- talking to guests
18. Dining Room Close- cleaning the dining room
19. Pre Close- bagging all of the trash cans after wiping them down

And just recently I was trained on cash so now I can:

20. Cash- taking orders
21. Cash Close- cleaning

21 different positions? haha yeah it's kind of crazy but very manageable. we have 5 different dining rooms so if you're bussing, you are only in charge of one dining room, trays, the whole restaurant, trash has 3 sections, each with about 6-9 trash cans, topping bar is one side, filler is for one register, etc... it's all very manageable. I like cash so far the best, we'll see how often i'm on it! magical moments is fun too because you get to announce a guests' celebration and get the whole dining room to help celebrate. I hate trash but a lot of people like it because you don't have to deal with guests... haha, i just don't like it though! i'll write more later, need to go to sleep!

3 1/2 week mark

So I've been here for 3 1/2 weeks so far. I like it here. I love the guest interaction. I started talking to a guest in one of our dining rooms the other day and found out that he was a Human Resource Director at a company (he never told me which company). We were talking about Disney and how successful they are with employee relations. We were also chatting about reasons why cast members stay with the company for so long. I told him that I believe cast members stay for so long not because of the jobs we do, because honestly, they're not the best jobs in the world, but rather for what we do while we are here.

I began to tell him about my 11hour work day where I was on trash for 8 of those hours. Taking out trash is not fun at all but it is what you make of it. I was in the lobby checking on the trash cans when I heard a family talking about not being able to eat and watch the parade at our restaurant. I chimed in and was like "Of course you can watch the parade and eat here, as a matter of fact, there is a whole section of our outside dining room that few guests know about and it is totally empty right now. after you order your food, let me know and i will take you right to it!" Now this doesn't seem like a big gesture but it meant the world to this family. It was one of their daughters birthday and she was crying because she was tired and just wanted food. They were so happy that we were willing to help them and make them feel like the only guests in the park. It was all of their first visits to Disney world and this tiny gesture made them feel appreciated. The next day they came back to Pecos and the first person they saw was me (i was on greeter; at the front door saying 'howdy' to everyone) and they were thrilled to see me yet again, and took my advice for a second day and sat in the same seats to see the parade again. This one tiny gesture meant the world to them.

The same day I was also able to help so many guests find the characters or princesses they wanted to see. I have also been able to use my limited knowledge of spanish to communicate with guests looking for assistance.

The same day I was talking to the gentleman I also received a basics audit meaning a manager observed me at work to make sure I was following the four basics. My manager said I passed with flying colors! I also received a great service fanatic card!!! (Meaning I did something that the manager felt the need to recognize me for; I was going out of my way to greet guests as they walked through our doors instead of standing in the back of the dining room and blending in with the background., like most cast members do.)

Great Service Fanatic cards are a perfect example of how managers keep their cast members motivated. We also have a word (or quote) of the week that if a manager hears a cast member saying, they will also receive a great service fanatic card. This week was "Happy trails, hope to see y'all soon!"

More observations to come soon!

Dropping like flies......

So I live in a 3 bedroom with 5 other roommates. Well so far 2 have left... one left after 4 days of being here and the other left this past Sunday, which was a week and a half. They just had different expectations of what the DCP would be like. A few people have also been terminated as well, like the girl who was running through our complex the other night screaming at the top of her lungs because she was overdosing on heroine. Another new girl at my job also left and my roommates sister's boyfriend is leaving too & my roomie said that if he left, she would probably leave too. It's crazy!

I'm glad I came down here with very low expectations. I came expecting to take out trash for 12 hours straight, which is what I did yesterday at work but only for 8 hours. I'm glad I came expecting 70 hour work weeks and i'm glad I came expecting to be 'abused' (like doing the dirty work and working reallyyyyyy long hours) because it's making the program exceed my expectations right about now. I have no plans on leaving and am going to stick it out, no matter how hard things may get. I'm def not scared and am looking forward to making the best of my time here. I'm also going to take full advantage of all of my perks while I'm down here, getting into the parks free, getting deeply discounted rates for my parents, and getting discounts on a ton of other things too! I'm not leaving!!!!

Assessment Day!

Soooooooooooo today was assessment day, the day they test you on everything you have learned during training to make sure you are proficient enough to work on your own. Work started at 9:15am, I was there and clocked in by 9:05. We first started off in the computer lab, completing an assessment on hazardous materials and the Disney Dining Plan (knowing what it is in case guests ask!). Then we headed upstairs to do a quick run through of all the positions and what to do in those places. Next we went on a land tour (for the third time! haha) so we know where everything is if a guest asks! Then we came back and went out to be greeters and played with puppets and rang bells to get guests to come into our restaurant. Next was a veryyyyyyyyyy long break.

We came up to watch the "Celebrate a Dream Come True" parade then went in the back to take our written assessments, one for the counter and one for the dining room. Once we were finished with the 2 written assessments, we came out and it was POURING outside. We then grabbed a manager and he sent us off to positions to assess us. I went to the counter and started filling orders. After a few minutes and about 10 orders given out,  he pulled me aside and asked a bunch of questions about the position, what to do at the end of the night, etc. and I passed my assessment! We then went and saw the other 2 girls in my training group and he did the same to them with their positions and by the end, it was time to leave! We all left and had passed our assessments. =)

Almost done with training!

Soooooooo... on site training was, for the most part, good! Tuesday was on the Counter; filling orders, stocking the counter, making drinks, cleaning it at the end of the night, interacting with guests etc. Wednesday was the toppings bar; making sure everything was stocked, making the bowls of toppings, condiments and trays, and cleaning the topping bar at the end of the night, etc. Thursday we were in the Dining Room where we cleaned tables, swept the floor, took out the trash, and learned how to pre-close and close sections of the dining room. That was definitely the easiest and the hardest day.

Tonight, a bunch of the cast members decided to throw us a "Welcome to Pecos Bill's" party for all of the new CP's (College Participants) at TGI Fridays so I will be heading there shortly! But of course, I will only be there for about an hour because my assessment is tomorrow at 9:15am, meaning I have to be up at 8am!!!

I will let y'all know how the assessment went!

Training Galore!

So Traditions was awesome (besides the whole having to be at the bus at 645... haha... they must know i'm not a morning person). We learned a lot about the Disney Corporation and how it operates. We were also given a chance to explore a small part of the Magic Kingdom. A ton of people thought the class itself was boring & it put them to sleep but it was One Hundred and Ten Percent Human Resources and how the company operates as a whole with soooooo many cast members (the Orlando location has anywhere from 58,000- 63,000 employees at one time, yes 58 thousand.) and i found it quite interesting!

Saturday was Food and Beverage training... about an hour was in the classroom talking and asking questions and then we went into the computer lab and did online training for 3 hours. We were all about ready to shoot ourselves by the time that was over.

Today was our 'Once Upon a Time... Is Now' training. We entered the Magic Kingdom as guests and were given a tour around the park and learned some interesting things... we rode two rides and just basically got a feel for the park and where everything was to better help guests. We also learned how to get to and from our work locations and other tips and things! After that we were broken down into smaller groups according to our role and were taken to another spot and split up into smaller groups. My group went and did some more online training first, had lunch, then went to costuming to get our costumes! It was def cool to see the costuming department. Once we found our costumes, we were free to leave. So I came home and took a nap... hahaha

I have tomorrow off and then train tuesday, wednesday, and thursday then have an assessment on sunday about all we have learned so far. It's definitely going to be a fun week! I can't wait to start working!

Checking In

So yesterday was check in day... started out by filling out a bunch of paperwork, standing in line, signing up for housing, getting my key, getting my housing id, registering my car, then finding out when casting was. Had about 45 minutes before casting so I sat in my car and went through all of the paperwork we had just signed... Next was Casting (Disney's version of a Human Resource Office). We completed more paperwork and signed more things, got fingerprinted, background check, and a few other things.

Then I finally had time to go back to my room (it was 1:30 and I had been checking in since 8am!). Grabbed food first then headed over to my apartment. Kellie's parents were there and offered to help me unload my car so we grabbed my stuff and brought it all up! Then we had a housing meeting... came back and unpacked.

Today was our free day... woke up, registered for Human Resource Management and People Management to take while I'm down here. Then ran over to CVS and went back to my apartment. Went to Wal-mart with my roommates to get food next, came back & put it all away, had a few minutes to relax then left to go to a Welcome party at Vista Way for all of us that just moved in! Now back in my room putting the finishing touches on my room and going to sleep soon because I have to be awake at 6am for Traditions!

Leaving for Disney!

I'm leaving in the morning! I can't wait! Leaving around 8am & will be stopping a little over half way to stay the night... then getting up the next day and driving the rest of the way! I have a dr's appointment in Florida already on tuesday with an allergist and then hanging out with people! I'll update y'all after check in on Wednesday!

29 Hours and counting......

So I was starting a vlog (video blog) back in March but never got around to finishing taping the first episode. So i'm going to try this again, only this time in writing! I'll try to update at least once a week, no promises, but i'll try to keep y'all updated.

So for those of you who don't know, I was accepted into the Disney College Program back in February. The Disney College Program is kind of an internship with Disney. You move to Orlando (they provide you with housing, in exchange for a minimal fee out of your paycheck every week) and you work a minimum of 30 hours a week, sometimes over 70 hours during peak periods. You don't have to take classes and in many cases, you don't get credits for this either. In my case, I will try to take a class while i'm down there, and I have convinced HPU to give me 12 credits for this opportunity... to convince them, I had to take a 3 credit class where I had to complete a mini internship as well as fill out an extensive application with 13 objectives that I plan on achieving while i'm at Disney. 

I'll find out where I'm working as well as choose where I would like to live when I check in on August 11th.

So I technically leave tomorrow (August 9th). It's been a crazy busy summer with tons of ups and downs. We'll now see where Disney will take me!