20 Yoda Quotes That Are Perfect for Business
Yoda is one of the main characters of the Star Wars franchise. Created by George Lucas, this fictional character first appeared in the 1980 film ‘The Empire Strikes Back’. In total, Yoda appears in eight Star Wars films and three television series. Yoda has said some very inspirational lines in the films that you can apply to many situations in your life. Surprisingly, considering Yoda is a character from science-fiction films, many of this character’s quotes are applicable to business. Here are 20 Yoda quotes that are perfect for business.
1. On Working Hard
“You will find only what you bring in.” – Via Bayart
What you can achieve in business depends on the effort you are willing to put in as there is a direct correlation between effort and rewards. Give yourself goals and work hard to achieve them. This is down to nobody else but yourself.
2. Learning from Mistakes
“In a dark place we find ourselves, and a little more knowledge lights our way.” – Via Goalcast
Business is a continuous journey of learning. Even those who have been in business for a lifetime will continue to learn new things as they go along. Sometimes, it is facing a problem that gives you the opportunity for a learning experience. When you make a mistake, you need to find a solution to the problem. This will often require gaining a little more knowledge to help you move forward from a difficult time. Not only does this help you to overcome the immediate problem, but it also means that you will avoid making the same mistake again in the future and you can put strategies in place to avoid facing the same situation.
3. On Commitment to Your Business
“A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind.” – Via MABG
Anyone who has achieved success in business will tell you that it has required commitment. This means devoting both time and energy to achieving your business goals. It also means not giving in when the going gets tough.
4. On Staying Positive
“Yes, a Jedi’s strength flows from the Force. But beware of the dark side. Anger, fear, aggression; the dark side of the Force are they. Easily they flow, quick to join you in a fight. If once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny, consume you it will, as it did Obi-Wan’s apprentice.” – Via Yoda Quotes
In some more wise words from Yoda, he is advising that you should not allow negative feelings to take over. In relation to business, you can apply this to maintaining a positive frame of mind. Like Yoda says, negativity can take over quickly when things are not going to plan. If you cannot overcome the negativity, it will impact on your ability to move forward and make progress. Instead, you must look for the positives in every situation and turn any negative phases into a learning opportunity. Otherwise, negativity will consume you and you will not succeed in achieving your goals.
5. On Evaluating Your Strategies
“If no mistake have you made, yet losing you are … a different game you should play”
Putting strategies in place to achieve your goals is important, but it is just as important to regularly evaluate the effectiveness of these strategies. Just because you have implemented a strategy does not mean you need to continue using the same strategies throughout the life to your business, even if they have worked well initially. If you have made no mistakes but you are not making progress towards your goals, then it is time to re-evaluate the strategies that you have put in place. Trying using different strategies to see if they are more effective. If so, implement these instead and monitor your progress as a measure of their effectiveness.
6. On the Importance of Patience
“Patience you must have, my young Padowan.”
An important lesson to learn in business is to have patience. Even if you are keen, motivated, and enthusiastic, it does not necessarily mean that you will succeed straight away. It is important to have the patience to get the best results. Similarly, you should not give up just because you do not see immediate results. Have a little patience and you may see better results than expected.
7. On the Virtue of Patience
“I cannot teach him. The boy has no patience.”
Many people in business want to achieve great things as soon as possible. As soon as they have an idea in which they believe, they expect immediate success to follow. Unfortunately, it is very rare that this happens. Most businesses go through a long and difficult journey before they become successful. It can take time to make things happen and for ideas to develop into reality. Even if there is some financial success, you may need to reinvest this money to the next stage of your business and wait until you reap the financial rewards for yourself. Learning the virtue of patience is an essential trait you must develop.
8. On Embracing Change
“You must unlearn what you have learned.”
Things are constantly changing in business and it is important that you can embrace these changes. This means that how you have done things since the beginning of the business are not always the ways that you will do things in the future. Just because you have learned one way of doing things, it doesn’t mean there is not a better way. Therefore, you must have a willingness to learn and adapt as you go along.
9. On Delegation
“Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose.”
The temptation as a leader is to try and take control of everything. While you need to know what is going on in all aspects of your business, this does not necessarily mean that you must physically complete every task yourself. This can lead to you trying to juggle too many balls and it will result in mistakes being made and tasks not being completed to your best or being left unfinished. It can also cause stress and exhaustion if you are trying to achieve everything alone. You must learn to let go of a little control and delegate some tasks to the rest of your team.
10. On Facing Your Fears
“Named must your fear be before banish it you can.”
Running a business is a scary business and many managers or business owners have lots of fears. Unfortunately, fear is something that can hold you back in business. Therefore, it is vital that you face your fears and tackle them head-on. It is only by doing this that you can achieve your full potential.
11. On Choosing Your Leadership Style
“To be Jedi is to face the the truth, and choose. Give off light, or darkness, Padawan. Be a candle, or the night.”
Your skills as a leader and your leadership style will affect how your team perceives you and what you will get out of them. You need to choose your leadership style carefully to get what you want out of others. Yoda uses the examples of light and dark, and of being a candle or the night. In other words, do you want to lead by setting a positive example to others, or by instilling fear in your team? The choice is yours, and what you choose will affect your results and success.
12. On Taking Risks
“The fear of loss is a path to the darkside.”
Being an employee is a safe bet where the rules and boundaries are put in place for you and you must adhere to them. It is an entirely different ball game for business owners as the decision-making and risk-taking are all up to them. In business, there are many occasions when it can benefit the business to take a risk instead of playing it safe. An inability or unwillingness to take the occasional risk can have a negative impact on your business.
13. On Putting in the Effort
“Do or do not. There is no try.”A business will not run itself and it cannot survive unless you are willing to put in the effort. Likewise, putting in the effort will lead to success, while a lack of effort can lead to failure. This Yoda quote is saying that either you put in 100 percent effort or do not bother at all. Saying that you tried is not good enough if you want your business to succeed.
14. On Avoiding Stress
“Poison stress is.”
Yoda warns of the impact that stress can have on people. Stress is a common problem for those in business as they face daily challenges and suffer from huge pressures. Long-term stress is damaging to both your physical and mental health, which can lead to an inability to make decisions, a lack of focus, fatigue, and time off work. Therefore, you should take measures to reduce stress whenever possible so that you can run the business properly. This can mean delegating work, getting plenty of rest, taking breaks, or breaking down larger tasks into smaller and more manageable tasks.
15. On Flexibility About the Future
“Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future.”
Setting both short-term and long-term goals is vital as this gives you targets to aim for in your business. However, applying some flexibility is also important. You do not know what is in the future, so you should not necessarily set your goals in stone. Sometimes you may surpass the goals you have set, and on other occasions, you may realize that your goals are unachievable and you may need to reassess the situation.
16. On Having the Right Mindset
“That is why you fail.”
This is what Yoda says in response to Luke Skywalker saying, “I can’t believe it”. This quote is telling entrepreneurs and business people that business is all about having the right mindset. Having the right mindset is a big factor in whether you will achieve success or not. You must believe in your own plans for others to also believe them, and adopting a positive attitude will make speed bumps seem less problematic.
17. On Training Employees
“Always pass on what you have learned.”
According to Yoda, a master should always pass on what they have learned to their student. This is a quote that you can easily apply to business in relation to training your employees. As their leader, you have lots of experience, skills, and knowledge. Passing these on to your team will help them to support you in achieving your business goals and will also empower them to reach their full potential.
18. On the Importance of Taking Care of Yourself
“Soon will I rest, yes, forever sleep. Earned it I have. Twilight is upon me, soon night must fall.”
You should never underestimate the importance of taking care of yourself when running a business. Although you must work hard and put effort into everything you do, it is also essential that you rest both your body and your mind. A failure to take care of yourself properly will lead to fatigue. IN turn, this can impact on your effectiveness in the workplace and your ability to make a decision. Getting enough sleep and eating properly is a necessity, not a luxury.
19. On Taking Control
“Control, control. You must learn control.”
If it is your business, then you must take control. You are the leader, the decision-maker, and the person who needs to set an example to the rest of the team. Choose your path and your tactics and stick to them. Don’t just follow others as they could take you in the wrong direction.
20. On the Importance of Teamwork
“Help you I can. Yes, mmm.”
Running a business alone is almost impossible, so your team is vital to your success. Working as a team and supporting those in the team is a lesson you need to learn for things to run smoothly. Offering your support to those who need it will give people the skills they need to do their job well. It will also make them feel valued and motivate them to do their best whenever possible.
