How to deal with systemic bullies

I was talking to someone yesterday about the most recent political debacle in the US, namely the Governor of Florida fiscally punishing Disney for standing up for gay rights. By the way, rotten move Governor! I am taking away your already meager brownie points.

Also, because people who are on the wrong side of civil rights and social justice issues really get on my nerves, I am posting here some tactical recommendations for all the other amusement park corporations that might have a beef with those whose thinking seems to be stuck in the 18th century or thereabouts.

And to be 100% clear and avoid a LinkedIn kerfuffle, this is not about fluffing up the virtues of capitalism or the might of American corporations. Capitalism has too many flaws to list here and is, in more than one way, also connected to the wrong side of civil rights and social justice; this article is however not about that. THIS IS ABOUT BEATING A BULLY AT ITS OWN GAME. If you are squeamish, avert your eyes now.

What can I say? I am a strategist. About 30 seconds into the conversation I realized that I was already starring at the wall, problem-soling in my head and finding answers to a question raised by the person I was conversing with: “well, what’s Disney supposed to do in return? It’s not like they can pick up the parks and leave?”

Actually, they can do quite a lot.

Because bullies only understand the language of pain inflicted on their bull tender parts, for a Governor, money, stats, and clout, are everything. So repeatedly hit the bully where it hurts most (in the numbers) with a "death by a thousand cuts" strategy.

Here’s a fun brainstorming list of “How to mess with the Governor of Florida”:

1). First and above all, I would AMPLIFY the civil rights and social justice discourse, showing people that even corporations get punished by big bullies for doing what’s right, and I would tie that in with election campaigns down the road. I would use this moment in history to inspire people who might be scared to voice their own viewpoints, and showing them that yes, while being an advocate for what's right comes at a cost, there are ways to fight back, and that everyone has power. Turn the economic fight into a victory for the things you care about, and then start kicking the bully in the shins in all the unexpected ways you can. Narrative? "Because I am big (i.e. Disney) I actually have a duty not to back down from the bully, because if I back down, then what chance does the little guy have? I absolutely must stand."

2). Offer x% off for all entrance tickets to K-12 Florida students during school days while increasing the price of weekend tickets for all Florida residents by $1 and being explicit about who caused the price hike. I would imagine this would immediately and indirectly increase truancy in the state AND lower workforce productivity WHILE not engendering any love for the Governor.

3). Do the same for local government employees and all other employed public servants in Florida, offering special weekday discounts to postal workers, DMV employees, city hall clerks, etc. That would increase vacation days taken by local residents causing a decrease in productivity during the workweek. For maximum effect, I would make it an X+Y% if people come and visit two days in the row. That will definitely cause some empty desks in the Governor's office, and another overall ding in numbers!

4). Start employing primarily our of state people and bus them in every day from across the state line, using out of state transportation contractors. Again, be explicit about the policy, so people understand why and where the ripple effect is coming from. How do you like that unemployment spike combined with decreased revenue and increased traffic, Mr. Governor? That should make your really popular with your constituency.

5). For bonus points, if you can transfer all you Florida-based residents employees to your California or international parks (on rotation, with bonus perks so everyone is happy) that should mess up some local dynamics and complicate taxation while shifting qualified workforce out of state - triple whammy at a minimum! Once there, people might actually like the taste of liberalism with the lower humidity, and might never return to your backwater hood.

6). I would immediately cut deals with low occupancy cruise ships and have them moored just far enough from Florida shores and ports (possibly in South Carolina), offering cutthroats hotel deals onboard, thereby reducing the state's tourism revenue. For special kicks, I would also contract with out of state underemployed and pandemic-strained transportation companies (water and land) to shuttle these tourists to and from the parks, offering people additional incentives to dine and see shows, movies, etc. onboard the ships so I could further cut into Florida's restaurant and entertainment state revenues AND employment rates. More delicious stats against the Governor.

7). I would also do exactly the same thing with hotels just outside the state lines plus as many Airbnb, VRBO etc. as possible, to cut into state's tourism revenues even deeper, while soliciting friendly tax incentives from neighboring states. Can you imagine what Georgia would do to get Disney business? Hurray for numbers!

8). I would charter twice-daily planes from low-cost, pandemic-strained suppliers, to bring people for the day only from all neighboring states on a 1.5 hrs. flight radius, offering families door-to-door transfers so their feet never touch Florida ground outside the parks, further cutting into tourism, transportation, meals and entrainment spending in Florida. I would advertise this specifically to large families with little kids based on Census data, selling it as a campaign to “Skip the hotel!” "Save time and money this summer!" And “Play in our Kingdom at day, sleep in your kingdom at night! Day trips to Magic Kingdom! Have your child sleep in their familiar bed at night!”

9). I would start cutting deals with out of state supply chain partners for food, beverages, and other products. When you are a Fortune 50 company, you have enough muscle to make a ripple if you stop buying supplies in state. This can provide jobs to truckers outside Florida, and prove, long term more lucrative for small businesses and aggregate smaller farms that did not have access to large markets before. Win-win (but not for the Governor of Florida).

10). I would actually start prospecting land in other, and maybe closer parts of the country. Crazy, yes, but why let the enemy think they got you by your tender parts? Show the enemy that you actually have options. Maybe it is time to scale, replicate, even relocate? It’s a long shot, long range strategy, but why not explore it? When at war, everything is fair and possible. Plus, it will send the message that you mean business, and that ultimately, long-term the loses for the state could be much greater than it seems at first blush...

And to be even more devious, you can start messing with Florida in even worse ways:

• Fill all the Disney hotels in Florida with Ukrainian refugees, particularly women and children. They get comfort and safety, Disney gets good PR, and Florida gets nada - no purchasing power, no revenues, and increased concerns about community integration, workforce dynamics, etc. That should keep the Governor busy for a while.
• Offer discounts to Florida residents who got divorced that week, or for teenage pregnant moms and high school dropouts, offering "a mental health day at the park". Even more fun: "Turn your gun in to the police, get a free ticket to the park! Let's make our neighborhoods safer!". To make visible the more subtle connections between any mammoth entertainment complex and long-ranging impacts of community indicators, document the campaign's pre- and post- Florida stats to see if divorce rates increase, if high school dropout rates increase, if teenage pregnancy rates increase in the state and the oft-touted Florida gun ownership drops. If the needle moves, while correlation is not indication of causation, it could give the business ammunition to show the state that the business is much more entrenched in the community than previously believed. When you have power, you do have to use it responsibly, AND, every now and then, you might be forced to remind the bully that you actually have such power over things they might have never imagined that you do... You can take this really far of course ("show me your XYZ proof of any bad behavior and I will incentivize your bad behavior with a fun perk") and thus truly mess with the Governor. Hey, what can I say, even irresponsible adults deserve family time and mental health breaks, no?
• Offer discounts to Florida residents for COVID vaccination and every other polarizing issue that Florida is struggling with. See what happens.
• Offer discounts to Florida residents who vote in each and all their elections. See what happens when civic participation increases in Florida!

The above is just an exercise, of course; a taste of all the strategic and tactical possibilities to make Florida reconsider. I only had 10 minutes to come up with it and half of it might not even work, but the point stands. Everyone who is bullied has recourse. If residents protest for having their ticket be $1 more expensive, connect the dots: explain that it is the Governor that just made the ticket more expensive by removing tax incentives. If citizens wonder why locals can’t get a job at the parks, I would explain where that's coming from. And so on... I wonder how long would it take for the Governor to feel the budgetary and political pressure once unemployment raises, truancy rises, productivity lessens, and revenues drop on various fronts?

If you do it on-brand and in positive ways, there's literally no limit to the subtle and not-so-subtle types of pressure one could apply to make a bully reconsider. You just have to be willing to play ball, stand up for yourself and for what’s right, and then be just a smidge more of a berserker than your enemy.

With the right strategy and a persistent tourniquet, you can be terrifying.

Seriously Florida, knock it off. I am turning my back on you.