What The Star Wars Bi-Trilogy Teaches Us

I must confess, I love the Star Wars movies. I know, I know, don’t hate me for it. Over the last few weeks, they have been playing all of the original movies on TV and I am loving it. When I was a child, I always wanted Luke, Leia and the rest of the gang to win. While watching as an adult, there are fantastic life lessons and moral values that can be derived from these movies. I have included some below….

Use the Force, Not The Dark Side

• Everything required to make ourselves better lies within us. You must learn how to discover this power (the force) within you. This is part of your journey in life;
• Conversely, the worst enemies you will face are within. Your world is a reflection of you. If you view the world in a negative light, this is what you will see in others. Always look for the good in people. When you connect with the world around you, you gain insights and potential ways to improve yourself;
• Following on from the above point, learn to overcome your fears. As Yoda said, “Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering”. Overcoming fear is important for your personal growth. Otherwise, you will get stuck in a rut. One of the best ways of overcoming your fear is to stop avoiding it. Challenge yourself with the things that you most afraid of;
• Fear and anger are negative energies. You may win some battles by using negative energies, but at what price to yourself. It is far better to remain calm when doing what you need to do. If you can remain calm and focussed, the result will take care of itself.

Get The Job Done

• If you want the job done, you need to be willing to entrust and enlist others. Even Yoda could not defeat the Empire himself (although I would have been interested in the odds). Yoda had to help and provide service to others so they could get the job done;
• The size of your adversary does not matter. As Yoda said, “size matters not”. If you have a goal that you wholeheartedly believe in, and you focus 100% of your energy to that goal, anything can be achieved in life, self-defence, whatever;
• No matter what your goal is, there will always be somebody who does not like it and are willing to let you know. You should certainly absorb information from others, but do not let this distract you from what you need to do.

Be The Best Person You Can Be

• Do not judge others. Everybody means something to somebody. You could also mean something to somebody with a kind word or action;
• Always be there for your family and friends. With our journey through life, you want to share it with good, honest companions. They will help you. You will help them. That is part of life’s service;
• Pick your battles. You do not have to “win” every battle or argument. Sometimes, it is better to let things slide. This can result in a better outcome for all;
• Everything you see and hear is true….from a particular point of view. Remember, we are all raised differently and have different values. We must learn to respect the way others may think or feel.

Mentor Correctly

• With our children, they need good, strong mentors. Parents are the driving force behind their children. As martial arts instructors, we help reinforce important life lessons. As adults, we have built a certain level of experience, knowledge and wisdom. It brings no greater joy than to impart this wisdom on to students;
• With martial arts, we empower all students with tremendous physical tools. If these tools are not used correctly, the students can hurt others. Therefore, it is vitally important that we impart emotional and philosophical lessons in all classes. If we do not empower students correctly, we may be producing a Darth Vader (easily succumbed by power);
• The work of a parent, teacher or mentor is never done. From a teaching perspective, yes the classes finish at a certain time. However, no great teacher ever leaves their thoughts in the dojo. We all want to see the students excel in every aspect of their life. The work of a teacher is unending.

Yoda (just because I think the little fella is great)

• “Do or do not. There is no try”. This is one of the best movie lines of all-time. If you are simply trying things, you are more likely to give up at the first hurdle. By making clear decisions on what you will do…and then putting effort behind these choices…you are far more likely to succeed;
• Speaking of movie lines, my favourite is when Luke says, “I can’t believe it”, to which Yoda replies, “that is why you fail”. Touche! If you do not believe in yourself and your goals, how are you going to devote the energy to get things done? How will you get others to believe in you? Therefore, you must pick your challenges carefully and have an unshakeable belief you will get things done;
• Finally, we can impart all the philosophical lessons in the world on you, but at the end of the day, IT IS UP TO YOU! Only you can control your future. There are boundless opportunities for you to achieve your aims in life. Be patient, focus your energies on all of the things that are important to you, and your time will come.