‘Star Wars’ means business

I’m not a diehard Star Wars fanatic. Neither am I a sci-fi movie geek. Sure, I like the Star Wars sexology (I’m assuming that’s what the six movies are collectively called. Triplet is to trilogy, and sextuplet is to sexology. Makes sense, right?). But I’m not sure I can say that it has changed my life forever. I’m not one of those lightsaber-toting dudes; neither am I a collector of Wookie memorabilia. And I’m certainly not one who would dress up as a storm trooper or a Jedi knight and line up for three weeks if only to catch the midnight premiere. Sure, I think George Lucas is a genius. But he ain’t infallible. For me, anyone who comes up with an idiotic character like Jar Jar Binks is far from perfect (Thank heavens, he was just an extra in Part 3).

Episode 3 is supposed to be the most satisfying of all the episodes because it finally connected the prequels to the original Star Wars. It finally revealed how that lovable little wonder kid in Episode 1, Anakin Skywalker, transformed to the evil, heavy-breathing, half-man, half-machine villain, Darth Vader. I truly enjoyed the film. But still, there were still a lot of things that remained a mystery, even after Episode 3. For example, how come Darth Vader could feel the presence of his son Luke Skywalker whenever he was "within the vicinity" – and yet, he never felt it with Princess Leia who is his daughter? And Yoda – man, how could anyone like him transform so drastically. It’s hard to fathom how an athletic, exceptionally skilled, extremely serious, highly respected, deeply philosophical Jedi Master transform into that pesky, irritating, impish, clumsy, and almost comical little midget in Empire Strikes Back. The Jedis were kinda fuddy-duddy characters – no-nonsense, all-business guardians. So to watch Yoda sneer and giggle like Grover of Sesame Street (by the way, the same guy did their voice, Frank Oz) is a bit off, if not downright inconsistent. And, finally, a word on the hairstyles. It’s hard to grasp how the hairstyles in Episodes 1 to 3 are so much hipper and cooler than the hairstyles of the characters in Episodes 4 to 6, which supposedly happened much, much later. The characters in Episode 1 to 3 had rockstar hairstyles. Qui Gon Gin looks like American Idol finalist Bo Bice. The characters in Episodes 4 to 6 have that retro, ’70s look. Han Solo’s hair was similar to William Martinez circa Bagets era. Kinda odd if you ask me.

I do like Star Wars, but not enough to consider converting from Catholicism to Jediism. I know a lot of people will kill me for this but I certainly don’t think it’s among the best movies of all time. Casablanca, Citizen Kane, Gladiator – even Forrest Gump – are much, much better films.

But there are three things I won’t deny: 1. Star Wars is a hugely successful commercial franchise – a big business empire – that has become a cultural phenomenon; 2. Star Wars is, in fact, a love story centering on a guy who, because of his deep love for certain people in his life, transforms from good to bad, and then, in the end, from bad to good (the only differences between Star Wars and Bridges of Madison County are the setting and the laser guns; and 3. There are a lot of business lessons we can pick up from the series.

Learn From ‘Star Wars’, You Will

A lot of articles have been written delving on the first two points. I will delve on the third.

If anything, the Star Wars series has given us some of the most memorable lines in cinematic history. It also offers a lot of lessons – not just on how to handle a laser sword – but general life (and business) lessons which we can all take with us.

• "Do or do not. There is no try."

In Episode 4, when Yoda was training Luke Skywalker to be a Jedi, Yoda challenged Luke to lift his spacecraft from the swamp using telekinesis (that is, using his mind power). Luke said, "I can’t! I can move rocks, but this is way too heavy." Yoda replied that "the Force" would help him lift anything. Luke then reluctantly responded, "OK, I’ll try." Yoda then snapped, "No! Do or do not. There is no try."

That line is so relevant, especially for us Filipinos. We Pinoys like saying "I’ll try" or "Sige, subukan ko." We say it because we don’t want to hurt someone by saying no directly. But when we say, "I’ll try," what we’re really saying is "I can’t do it."

Yoda is right. "Try" is such an abused word. A lot of us have a "try" attitude. Believe me (and believe Yoda), you will never get to where you are going if you start with the thought, "I’ll try." For example, if you’re planning to go to Baguio this weekend, you never tell your friends you’ll try. You tell them straight – "I’m going to Baguio." You know you’re going – there’s no question about it.

In business, it’s the same thing. It’s useless to set goals and targets only to say, "I’ll try to hit it." I don’t like my sales staff saying, "I’ll try to hit my sales target." I want them to declare it – "I’ll hit my target." Because if I hear them say, "I’ll try," I know that in their minds, they have already failed. And that’s simply not acceptable.

Remember: Beware of the Dark Side that always declares "I’ll try." To failure, it leads.

• Feelings: Good vs. bad

All over the six Episodes, the words "Force" and "Dark Side" kept on cropping up. But the third most used word in Star Wars is "feeling." Obi Wan repeatedly said it, "Search your feelings, Anakin" or "Trust your feelings, Luke." If you watch the six Episodes straight, you’ll always hear the lead characters saying, "I have a bad feeling about this," especially when they’re about to get into a compromising situation.

Feelings, it seems, play an important role in the Force – whether you’re in the Good Side or the Dark Side. It was feelings that made Anakin a great Jedi. He felt he had it in him to be the greatest of all Jedis so he went all out for it. Yet, it was also feelings – specifically, his deep feeling attachment to his loved ones, his mother and his chick, Padme – that led him to the Dark Side.

In our lives – both personal and professional – feelings play an important role, too. Feelings can sometimes cloud our judgment if we’re not careful. Oftentimes, feelings makes it hard for us to discern what is good and what is bad. And that’s one thing we learned from Star Wars – feelings can sometimes be deceiving. For Anakin, it proved to be his undoing.

Feelings are not wholly a bad thing. It can be a good indicator because feelings don’t lie. You either feel good or you feel miserable. When you’re in a bad mood, you’re in a bad mood, period. But you must remember that feelings are not the only barometer. We may feel really crappy in our workplace. And we may sometimes feel really fed up and like to drop everything and start looking for another job. But normally, these feelings are fleeting – a part of our daily emotional rollercoaster. If you’re not careful, every change in feeling you have may lead you to transfer from one job to another. And that’s not a good thing. Feelings can sometimes betray us, just like in Anakin’s case.

The key is not to deny these feelings. Rather, you must always acknowledge your feelings. When you feel bad, acknowledge it and feel it. But remember, never make a decision based on what you feel at the moment. Give it some time, and try to discern. If, after much time and much thought you still feel the same way, then it may be time to make that fateful decision.

Trust your feelings – just the way you trust friends. But also remember that your feelings can betray you – just like friends. Feel all you must but also discern. Then decide.

• Being original is always the best.

As Star Wars has shown us, cloning or copying never really works out. Star Wars is a hit because it is unique. It is a sci-fi movie with a very human plot.

In Episode 2, a clone army was created out of a "host" bounty hunter. But no matter how good the host was, the clone army that was built in Episode 2 was doomed to fail. An army simply cannot operate if every soldier was of the same mold. If the host was a leader, then all the clones would want to be a leader. If the host was a follower, all of the clones would just follow – no one would lead.

The world is filled with different types of people for a reason. We’re all unique for a reason. If all of us were the same – that is, same wants, same needs – we’d never get anywhere. If we were all alike, there will never be a person who will come out of the pack and say, "I want to change things." We will all be satisfied because we will be with people who are like us.

In the business world, you will encounter some people who will tell you, "No need to reinvent the wheel. Just copy the winning formula of a successful business. And you’ll profit." Personally, I don’t subscribe to that. The most successful businesses are still those that innovate and introduce changes. In an article I wrote around two years ago, I mentioned that all those who copied Zagu (the drink kiosk) were doomed to fail. And, if you look around now, these copycats are no longer around. Only Zagu remains (and some other similar ones).

One of our MTV’s biggest clients, HP, is one of the most successful companies in the world. Their formula for success? They are not copycats. They continuously innovate and come up with new products all the time. They believe in being original and being new. When I met with them a few months ago and offered our musical events for sponsorship, they said, "We don’t want to be with everyone else. We want a new and original event which we want to own. Because we’re all about that – being original and new." And so we came up with a concert concept called "Right to Royalty" which is happening on July 29 at The Fort. It’s a totally new concert concept wherein we will be honoring the royalty of each musical genre – the most original artists – and those that always come up with something new. After meeting with HP, I realized why they are such a big company. They are original and they always come with something new.

May the Force be with you all.

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Thanks for your letters! You may e-mail me at rodnepo@yahoo.com.