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Yoda Rocks

By Will Turner

Many of you know this, but for those who don’t…Yoda is my hero. Yes, that funny little creature from the Star Wars movies is not only a great Jedi Master, he is a great teacher. His words of wisdom and eternal truisms are things we can all learn from.

Let me share a few of my favorite quotes from Yoda:

“You must unlearn what you have learned.”

Yoda spoke these words to Luke in “The Empire Strikes Back.” Luke wanted to become a Jedi warrior but he had much to learn. Yoda let Luke know that to get to the next level of mastery; he had to unlearn what he already knew. In the specific scene, it was Luke’s mental powers and his limiting attitudes that needed to be changed. Luke couldn’t conceive of powers he had never seen or used. In other words, he did not believe and consequently, that is why he failed.

How many times do we get stuck doing things the same way, because that’s what we know? As fast as things change around us, we need to pay attention to the ways we do things. In selling, that means that we can’t sell the same way today that we did a few years ago. How have you evolved in the past 12 months? What are you doing now to improve your knowledge, skills and attitudes? What limiting beliefs currently hold you back?

“Size matters not.”

No, this has nothing to do with the latest article in “Cosmo.” Yoda told Luke to use the “power of the force” to levitate his x-wing fighter space craft out of the swamp where it had crashed. In the scene, Luke looked at Yoda and said that he couldn’t do it. Luke, taken by the enormity of the task mumbled that “It’s too big.” To which Yoda emphatically replied, “Size matters not. Judge me by my size, do you?”

To illustrate the power of this quote, let me share a true story with you. About four years ago, I had a client who sold memberships and sponsorships for an association. Her association was partnering with another company and launching a very high-end web-based service. The fee for this service was about ten-fold the cost of her typical sale.

My client’s initial reaction was “I can’t sell this. My clients will never pay that much money for this service.” After some discussion in class, she realized that she simply believed that her clients wouldn’t spend the kind of money it would take to buy this new service. It was her perception, not the reality.

As it turned out, once she changed her limiting belief, she was able to sell the service successfully. This, in turn, allowed her to increase her sales 351% in a year’s time. She got a promotion and a raise once she realized that size (i.e. the cost) didn’t matter.

“Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.”

This is my favorite quote from Yoda. In the above-mentioned scene, after Luke is admonished for saying the x-wing fighter was too big to levitate out of the swamp, Yoda replied with “Size matters not.” Then, Luke gives Yoda a half-hearted “I’ll try” to indicate that he will do what he can.

It’s at this point that Yoda offers this powerful quote – “No. Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.” Yoda knows that if you say you are going to “try,” you give yourself an excuse for failure. In this particular scene, Luke was not committed to doing the task at hand. He didn’t believe he could be successful so he was giving himself a “back door” escape route with his thoughts and words.

How often do you use the word “try?” Pay attention and catch yourself. When you hear yourself saying “try,” challenge yourself. Are you setting yourself up for failure? Are you giving yourself an excuse for not succeeding?

Next time you find yourself with limiting beliefs, excuses or a defeatist attitude, remember my friend Yoda. He rocks.

Will Turner is the Founder and President of Dancing Elephants Achievement Group, an international sales training and consulting company. Will is a sales expert with 25 years of sales, marketing and sales management experience. Will created the Sales Magnetism program and co-authored Six Secrets of Sales Magnets. He can be reached at or 804-254-4122.