Episode
Ep. 678 - Bonus Show - 12 Years Working at Disney and DCL: A Cast Member's Story
- Published
- Jul 12, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 4283
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Summary
At 12 years old, sitting on Main Street USA, Theresa looked down at a single brick and decided it was hers — then spent 24 years at the Walt Disney Company proving it. She managed hotels, sold Disney Vacation Club onboard the ships for a dozen years, and came out the other side of a spinal cord injury that four doctors first mistook for ALS. This conversation covers all of it, plus the book she wrote about finishing hard things. In this episode: Why Theresa says the cast members are the most magical thing about Disney Cruise Line, and what she witnessed building that culture from the inside The reason she boarded a Disney cruise the day before emergency spinal surgery What onboard life as a vendor and DVC guide was really like: the perks, the boundaries, and the crew politics How 50-plus marathons and multiple Ironmans shaped her "race to complete, not to compete" outlook Her three straight-talk tips for first-time Disney Cruise Line families The origin of her book Built to Finish, and the turtle on the cover "If you take care of your cast members, your cast members are going to take care of your guests, which is then going to take care of your business needs." — Theresa Find Theresa's Book:Built to Finish (website): Built to FinishBuilt to Finish on Amazon: Built to Finish on AmazonInstagram: Built to Finish Support the Show:DCL Magazine — your ultimate guide to Disney Cruise Line tips and tricks. Join the waitlist and use promo code DCLDUO for 10% off at the WDW Magazine store. Stay Connected with the DCL Duo:Website | Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group We're Ranked as a Top Podcast by Feedspot:Top 30 Disney Cruise Line Podcasts (#1) | Top 20 Cruise Podcasts (#2) | Top Disney Podcasts (#4) | Top 20 Disney Cruise Line Influencers (#12) The views expressed in this p…