Enormous space battles, the Dark Side versus the Light, fantastical planets and alien species. As you’d expect of any Star Wars film, The Last Jedi offers all of those. Surprisingly, though, all that action comes with important lessons for your office.
How do Luke Skywalker and company’s adventures in a galaxy far, far away relate to team building at your company right here, right now? Read on to find out, but be warned: There are huge spoilers for the The Last Jedi ahead! Go see the movie and then get back to us.
1. If you have a plan, share it with the team
Sure, saving your masterful plan for a last-minute reveal is dramatic and all, but it’s a pretty bad way to save the day or to run a business. And The Last Jedi proves that something like four separate times. One culprit is ace X-Wing pilot Poe Dameron, who cooks up not one but two schemes, both of which end up getting people killed—partly because he didn’t share those plans with the rest of his team. Oh, and his second plan? He only tries it because the leader of the Resistance fleet doesn’t share her secret plan to save the day with anyone else!
And as if that weren’t enough, Luke arrives to save the day, stalling the evil Kylo Ren’s forces long enough to let the rest of the good guys escape—but he doesn’t tell anyone his plan! He just does cool stuff and leaves the team to waste precious time figuring out for themselves what Luke could have shared in a moment.
Don’t do that. If you’ve got ideas, or a great plan, or killer input, share it with your team. Keeping everyone on the same page and working toward a common goal is team building 101.
2. Think on your feet—but don’t be afraid to re-think everything
As valuable as enthusiasm and confidence can be for your project, business, or struggling galactic alliance, tunnel vision rarely helps anyone. Star Wars characters are known for improvising on the fly—no plan survives contact with the enemy, as they say. But in The Last Jedi, they don’t think far enough ahead. When Finn and Rose hit a snag trying to recruit an expert codebreaker to fight back against the First Order, they turn instead to a charismatic thief who says he can do the job. Star Wars loves its lovable scoundrels, but this guy would smell like trouble a solar system away. And surprise, he is!
Finn and Rose are so set on their overarching plan that they refuse to re-think it. Just as your team needs to be able to adjust details to carry off a great project, it must be able to recognize a flawed approach and go back to the drawing board when necessary.
3. Failure is inevitable, but you can’t let it stop you
The Last Jedi is all about failure and its consequences. Kylo Ren realizes he was foolish to serve Supreme Leader Snoke for so long. Luke grapples with his failings as a Jedi Master. Poe messes up constantly, all movie long, and needs to learn to stop being a knucklehead.
Your team will fail. It’s going to happen. Something important will slip through the cracks, or an unexpected disaster will strike, or a client will change their mind at the last second. A good team knows to stick together, roll with the consequences, and learn from mistakes. Just…don’t go sulk on a remote planet for like 10 years. That’s a bad way for anyone to deal with their problems.
Join the Action
Watson Adventures offers team building scavenger hunts activities just about anywhere—in your office, at local museums, in your favorite neighborhood—all over the country. On teams, you’ll follow clues to uncover secrets about the places you visit, take creative team photos, work together to solve intricate puzzles, and more. Learn more or contact us about team building scavenger hunts.