16 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Star Wars: The Force Awakens

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away there was a movie event called Star Wars: The Force Awakens!!!  Tonight I had the opportunity to attend an opening night showing.  Star Wars enthusiasts will absolutely LOVE this movie.  Casual fans, like me, will enjoy it and have a great time.  The seventh episode is full of large-scale action, a few BIG surprises, and enough nostalgia to keep everyone happy.  The Force truly has awaken.
The J.J. Abrams film focuses on the search for Luke Skywalker, the last remaining Jedi.  The movie centers around The Resistance (who see Luke as the key to their survival) and the evil First Order (who want to exterminate the Jedis) racing to locate a map showing his location.
While sitting amidst of room of Star Wars enthusiasts (that is putting mildly), I gleaned 16 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Star Wars: The Force Awakens.  Just a point of clarification, since I work with churches I view many lessons through the lens of church growth.

1. People Line Up For Excellence – At the theater I attended, all five opening night shows were sold out over a month in advance.  If you put on services with excellence, they will line up to attend your church as well.
2. You Cannot Move Your Organization Into The Future Until You First Touch The Past – This makes the movie a multi-generational experience.  There are countless references to the original Star Wars movie in the seventh episode.
3. Great Leaders Receive Honor – When General Leia is mentioned early in the movie, one of the characters says, “To me the general is royalty.”
4. Great Leaders Are Willing To Do Whatever Is Needed To Do What Is Right – Finn, a defector from the First Order, asks, “Why are you helping me?”  To which the Resistance’s top pilot Poe Dameron responds, “Because it is the right thing to do.”
5. Great Leaders Give People A Place To Belong – Upon returning to their ship, Hans Solo, played by the iconic Harrison Ford, declares, “Chewy, we’re home!”
6. Great Leaders Are Resourceful And Get Things Done – Rey, played by Daisy Ridley, asks Solo, “Is that possible (fly warp speed and then suddenly stop)?”  To which he answers, “I never ask that question until after I’ve done it.”
7. Great Churches Honor The Previous Generation – This movie did a wonderful job honoring and utilizing the skills of the original movies (Solo, Chewy, C3PO, Leia) while introducing us to a new generation of heroes.
8. Women Are Blessed With A Sense Of Intuition Men Lack – Just a fact.  I’m just saying.  Solo says, “Women always figure out the truth.  Always.”
9. There Is A Constant Struggle Between Light And Darkness – Darth Vader’s grandson (and Solo and General Leia’s son) Kylo Ren struggled throughout the film between the force(s) of good and evil.
10. Always Guard Your Mind – Because Satan/evil would love to control it.
11. Relationships Matter – General Leia tells Solo, “No matter how much we fought I always hated to see you leave.”
12. Smart Leaders Give Clear Instructions – Furthermore, she tells Solo, “If you see our son, bring him home.”
13. Put Your Best Resources On Your Biggest Problems – When it came time to destroy this film’s version of the Death Star, The Resistance sent in their best pilot to do so.
14. The Relationship Between Decisions And Consequences – One lesson our world needs to learn is you get to make whatever choices about your life you would like.  It’s your life.  You just do not get to choose the consequences as Kylo Ren discovered.
15. There Is No Success Without Succession – ***MAJOR SPOILER*** DO NOT READ IF YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW – After Solo’s death, Rey takes over his vessel and the role he played with The Resistance.
16. Smart Leaders Always Give Final Words Of Blessing Over Their Teams – General Leia tells Rey, “May the force be with you.”

Once again, this is an AMAZING film.  Go get in line and have a great time!