Why I Like Star Wars (Spoiler: It's About Working On a Mission)

Image: reddit.com

Here's a non-surprise: I like the original Star Wars movie.

The other day, I was trying to pinpoint why I still like it. Thinking about it in the context of the larger Star Wars universe, it really isn't that great: The light saber battle (singular) is really just a tease. The ending doesn't make a ton of sense. And Darth Vader seems tame compared to his younger days.

But Luke.

I like Star Wars because Luke's journey perfectly captures how I perceive my life and where I want it to go.

Here's a guy working a regular job he doesn't love, for a demanding boss, dreaming of a future just out of arms reach. Depressing right? (for the record: I like my job and boss). More specifically, Luke's day revolves around a schedule he doesn't control. He needs to be at work by specific times. When he is doing actual work (like cleaning the droids), he gets interrupted by someone else for another meeting (dinner in this case). It's an extreme version of office life.

Let's call it "schedule based time": How you spend your time revolves around a calendar of scheduled events. Typically, most of the scheduled events are created by someone else, and they span multiple focus areas.

Then Luke enters the hero cycle when he meets Obi-Wan Kenobi (side note, I'm in the "Rey is a Kenobi" camp) and his transformation begins. But, the Force isn't the only thing that changes Luke's world view, his time also changes.

Let's call it "mission based time": You spend your time in pursuit of accomplishing a goal, your mission. Typically, you don't have meetings, but you're the initiator if you do. Plus, you tend to have a singular focus.

This is what happens to Luke. The goal, the mission, is to get the droids to the rebel base safely (at least R2D2. How do people hate Jar Jar, but not C3PO?). Schedules don't matter. Food breaks are no longer mentioned. Even while traveling in the Millennium Falcon the focus is on the mission. There also seems to be an overwhelming sense of clarity on what to do next. For example, Luke makes the decision to save Lea easily because it aligns with the mission.

That's also why I like the movies The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Ocean's 11, and The Fellowship of the Ring. Each of them transition from schedule based time to mission based time.

Inspiring.

Image: lusipurr.com

There also seems to be a correlation with mission based time and passion (and to a lesser extent "following your dreams"). If you think it's important, other things become trivial and you're willing to let them go.

It's also why I struggle to like the movie It's a Wonderful Life. I mean, I want to like the message, but I can't help but feel it's trying to justify living in scheduled based time. For example, Luke doesn't tell Obi-Wan: "I need to stay and run the farm because people are depending on the crops we produce." That probably would have been the responsible thing. Didn't the hobbit's have responsibilities in the Shire as well?

So if mission based time is correlated with passion. It seems that schedule based time is correlated with unwanted responsibility. (Correlation doesn't mean all the time, just a tendency to appear at the same time more often than not)

It's a tension I struggle with. Personally, I crave to set up my life to be in mission based time, but find a majority of my day to be schedule based time instead.

In Real Life

Stepping out of movies, we see examples of this in real life as well. Business owners tend to live in mission based time. Employees tend to live in schedule based time. High performers, besides being singularly focused tend to live in mission based time: Two great examples are Yo Yo Ma & Stephen King. Here's a snippet from King's Wikipedia page:

He [King] sets out each day with a quota of 2000 words and will not stop writing until it is met... When asked why he writes, King responds: "The answer to that is fairly simple—there was nothing else I was made to do. I was made to write stories and I love to write stories. That's why I do it. I really can't imagine doing anything else and I can't imagine not doing what I do." He is also often asked why he writes such terrifying stories and he answers with another question: "Why do you assume I have a choice?"

Boom.

Image: bensbargains.com

Even Jesus lived in mission based time during his 3 years of ministry. I get that the gospels don't cover every moment and thought (could you image if Instagram, Twitter & YouTube existed?). But it was clear that Jesus had a mission: the cross. He was so passionate about his mission of renewing our relationship with God he avoided "responsible" things like political/civic involvement, a job, and raising a family. Here's a great example in Luke 2:

Now his [Jesus'] parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover... And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the group they went a day's journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions... And his mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress." And he said to them, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?"

How awesome is that? Even as a 12 year old he lived in mission based time.

So What?

I wish I had a brilliant call to action for this observation, but I don't. My guess is that I'm not the only one who picks up this narrative and subconsciously wants it as well. It is the first phase of the popular hero's journey after all.

My questions are: How do I live more in mission based time? Do I need to run a business full time? Do I need to become a high performer in a single area? Do I need a passion so intense it seems as if I don't have any choice? What if I don't? How do you balance all of this with current responsibilities? Is it OK to be George Bailey?

On the surface, it seems like the "right" answer is more nuanced than my question suggest. But is it? The examples of Ma, King, Jesus, and many others, suggests nuance is not needed.

Perhaps a good start is to stop watching movies about mission based time stories and start working on something I'm passionate about. Though, the trailers for the new Beauty & The Beast does look good ("There must be something more to this provincial life" - right?).