“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers. They push the human race forward… because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
These excerpts from a 1997 Apple campaign „Think Different” are an attempt at introducing the reader into the world of those looking for solutions outside the box.
A true revolution in amusement park industry began with imagineers- people who search for new solutions. It is Walt Disney who created the first team of ,,imagineers” in the 1950s. A classic joke describing who imagineers indeed are is a question:
How many Imagineers does it take to change a light bulb? The answer is – Does it have to be a lightbulb?
The rise of Disney parks ushered in a revolution in various leisure time sectors, on which issue I deliberated about many times in my articles.
Another, great revolution in the field of technology, accelerated by the creators of Apple, Microsoft and Google, has been taking place, and it has reached the entertainment sector. 
The person to have exerted probably the most influence on technological progress was Steve Jobs. His activity demostrates how broad a perspective one needs do take in order to create innovative products and outsrtip the competition by means of technological acheivements. The words uttered by actor Richard Dreyfus in the “Think Different” commercial in many ways describe Jobs himself.
Steve Jobs may have not invented the computer, however he created the iMac - a revolutionary and fabulously vivid PC. He did not conceive the MP3 player, but created the iPod which has become a standard itself. He did not invent the cell phone, yet he came up with the iPhone that has revolutionized the mobile industry. He was not responsible for the creation of the tablet computer, but made the iPad that – being “magical and revolutionary’ – has once again reshaped the worldwide computer industry. Although he did not invent the e-shop, he kickstarted the iTunes Store, attracting millions of clients.
It was thanks to Jobs that Apple accelerated the pace of change in music, movie and television industry as well as redefined the concept of a cell phone. Only apparently does Jobs have nothing in common with the theme park and attractions industry. Let me remind you by the way that Apple creator’s activity in Pixar revolutionized computer animation.
One cannot understand Steve Jobs and be home and dry with the leisure industry if one does not comprehend 7 main success principles upon which he based his approach to business and life:
1. Do what you love.
2. Put a dent in the universe.
3. Kick start your brain.
4. Sell dreams, not products.
5. Say no to 1,000 things.
6. Create insanely great experiences.
7. Master the message. 
Regardless of whether you run an amusement park, heritage park, family entertainment center or any other attraction, try to reconsider your activity in respect of the 7 principles. Thinking along these lines, you will discover dormant potential that you are not even aware of.
Marek Pisarski
Magazyn Atrakcje/Marek Pisarski Imagineering
Translated by Jacek Fortuniak
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