Ryan Seacrest

Ryan Seacrest

Ryan is quite simply one of the most influential, well-regarded, and well-known names in Hollywood. He is the quintessential Hollywood insider who...Full Bio

 

Disney CEO Bob Iger Sheds Light on Success Secrets — and Disney+!

Take note: Bob Iger has it (more than) figured out. As CEO of Disney, Iger leads the largest media conglomerate in the world and oversees everything Disney — from the company’s movie studio to TV series and much, much more.

The CEO is also behind recently released New York Times’ best-selling book The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company. In the book, Iger, who was also named 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.

Iger phoned into On Air With Ryan Seacrest on Wednesday, November 6, after Sisanie shared with Seacrest that her husband, Michael, read Iger’s book and now wakes up at 4am to seize the day à la the businessman.

“I like the peace and the quiet and the solitude,” Iger told Seacrest as to why he places such value on waking up early. “I need the peace and quiet. I need to get my head straight and think about the day. It’s my most creative time as well. I think not only about things I have to do, but things I’d like to do. Things I’d like to influence and it’s just vital for me to get my day going right by being alone with my thoughts and listening to music as well, that’s an important component of it.”

Iger, who listens to all kinds of music, admitted that he wasn’t an overachiever at a young age either and that it wasn’t until he understood the value of hard work that he stepped up. He’s also had to work hard to get to his position and faced adversity in the workforce at an early age after a boss told him once that he wasn’t promotable.

So what are his secrets to success? It’s all about time management.

“Everybody has their own secrets in terms of how to manage time and responsibilities,” Iger continued. “I’m relatively organized. I’m thoughtful about how I’m going to spend my time. I try to be deliberate about it even though things come up that are unforeseen that I can’t control. I try to be purposeful in terms of organizing my day and compartmentalizing as well so that there are times when I do go home and I have dinner with my family that I put my device down … and put the work away even if it’s for a short period of time. … It’s constant in terms of managing,” he concluded. “But it’s something I do aggressively.”

As for Disney+, Disney’s highly-anticipated streaming platform, Iger said it’s exactly what you want it to be.

“Disney+ is the answer to today’s consumers’ dreams and that is a direct to consumer service that is very, very mobile friendly,” he explained. “You can watch it on a fixed screen TV on the wall or on any device imaginable and you can watch programming when you want. … It has just about everything there is to be seen of Disney, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, and some from Fox — Simpsons is one of them — and movies will be available. … I think there’s a lot for everybody … of all ages and genders.”

Listen back to the full interview in the audio above to hear more from Bob, including what to expect from Frozen 2 and his secret daily post-dinner habit.


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