What we can learn from Disney's use of Golden Rule

I confess I am a fan of the "Disney experience." I have been there four times (kids and grandkids) and figure I have at least one more trip in me (granddaughter Piper is still about five years too young to really enjoy it).

I know full well this is not the real world. Maybe it's the way the world should be: clean, neat, safe, interesting, fun. Always someone there to help.

And friendly. I mean, friendly. Not the fake friendliness you get some places. The Disney "cast" (the company's word) really seems to enjoy people. In all the time I've spent there, I've met only one employee who seemed to be forcing a smile. Whether 18 or 80, the Disney people acted like they enjoyed what they were doing.

It was catching. I certainly saw my share of grumpy people - not even a vacation at Disney World will cheer up everybody. Overall, though, a minute or two talking to a bus driver, ride attendant or store clerk seemed to cheer up even the weariest visitor.

By my third trip, I decided to do some research (can't keep a good psychologist down). So I started asking "cast members" how they stayed so upbeat and good-natured.

The most common answer? "Well, that's how they treat us." "They" in this case being the Disney management.

Seems like someone at Disney figured out that if you treat people well, they will treat other people well. Strange idea, but it seems to work.

Actually, Disney is not the only service-oriented business to figure this out. I worked for McDonald's a few decades ago and they were busy even then training their managers to treat employees the way they wanted employees to treat customers. Other companies - Hewlett-Packard, Nordstrom, even some car dealerships - take a similar approach.

Come to think of it, it is a rather old idea: "do unto others as you would have them do unto others" (or something like that).

My experience at Disney left me wondering what would happen if more of us were genuinely pleasant to those around us. Maybe it's not only good business. Maybe it's just good relating. And if such niceness is as contagious as it seems, one person could actually make a difference in some of the crankiness we're experiencing. True, we're not talking world peace or an end to hunger (and we need to talk a lot more about both), but it is something we can do here and now that actually works.

I'm going to try to carry around a bit of Disney with me. And as for Disney World itself, I'll be back. Real or not, it's the sort of world I want to spend some time in every now and then.

• Dr. Ken Potts is on the staff of Samaritan Counseling Center in Naperville and Downers Grove. He is the author of "Mix Don't Blend, A Guide to Dating, Engagement and Remarriage With Children."