It was a tough day. And about to get tougher. That day was the day after Easter and one of the busiest days of the year at Walt Disney World. We were understaffed and over guested. The wait to ride my attraction, Epcot’s Journey into Imagination, was over an hour long. The only one smiling was the audio-animatronic ride host Dreamfinder.

We had somehow made it through the morning. I was eagerly waiting for the midday shift crew so my team members could go on break. Heather was the first scheduled to arrive. But when she did I got a nasty surprise. The night before she had shaved off half of the hair on her head. What remained she had dyed white.

Disney had this policy called the Disney Look: no hook earrings, no tattoos, no mustaches, no beards on men, no unnatural hair colorings and, especially, no shaved heads on women.

In most situations, you could send the offending cast member back to Wardrobe to remove or cover over items. But a barely natural hair color? A half-shaved head? There was no way to cover that. We sent Heather home with a verbal warning.

That was then. My time as a Disney attractions lead seems so long ago. Disney has recently posted huge changes in the Disney look partially displayed in the snap above (photo courtesy Disney). Those changes allow more personal expression by cast members. A listing of the new guidelines include the following.

• Men can wear long hair, fuller bears and mustaches, makeup, earrings, and nail polish.
• Visible body tattoos, within certain guidelines, are permitted.
• Cast members can wear costumes that express their gender identification.
• Visible necklaces are now allowed, as are wrist and ankle bracelets.
• Cultural and religion required clothing are, of course, permitted.

The intent of the original Disney Look was that nothing on a cast member’s person would either distract from eye-to-eye contact with a guest or interfere with the theme of the show. The intent of the new Look standards is to be more inclusive and embrace alternative lifestyles and personal choices.Will it work? For some people it is a clear plus. It is likely especially popular amongst those in the art and entertainment communities drawn to work at Disney. For the more conservative, traditional Disney audience, it’s an unknown.

Whenever Disney changes anything drastically, the purists say, “Walt’s rolling over in his grave.” There are two things wrong with that statement.

1. Walt was cremated. He’s not rolling over.
2. No one knows what Walt would do if he were alive today. A defining characteristic of Walt Disney was that he did things differently each time. He also was extremely adept at keeping one foot firmly in the past and one just as firmly in the future. To presume to know what Walt would do today is folly.

We all need to balance the past with the future. Sometimes, like in this instance, it’s difficult and maybe even painful. But those who can simultaneously honor the past AND move aggressively towards the future usually win. Just like Walt.