Star Wars legend holds that a Jedi Master is one who has successfully trained a Padawan learner to the status of Jedi Knight. Disciplined, experienced Jedi may become full-fledged Jedi Knights once they have completed “the trials” that test the candidate’s skills, knowledge, and dedication to the Force. The three tests are known as the Trial of Skill, the Trial of Spirit, and the Trial of Knowledge.
Not surprisingly, this process holds forth with the structure of corporate personal development and management progression. We baby boomers --- if we came up thru the ranks in a large corporation --- can recognize the concept and identify with it, as well as fondly recall the Jedi Masters who helped us become Knights.
However, the business world is a different place than it was even a few years ago. Layoffs and budget cutbacks have significantly changed the landscape, and thus the opportunity for direct mentoring and development.
Personal networking must now assume a primary role in career development, as our former corporate mentors have been subjugated by other demands and governance objectives within the structure of the corporation. This lack of personal development has been further exacerbated by the mobility of work and career in today’s business and professional world: the average number of jobs held during a lifetime has rapidly moved to ten, and is on the increase. This means that instead of having a single corporate Jedi Master responsible for our development, we may have multiple Masters throughout our careers. We must find these Masters on our own now, and convince them that we are worthy of their attention and largess.
The point of this commentary is that expertise and mastery of networking skills is vital to not only the development of our Padawan workforce to Jedi Knights, but to our continuing role Jedi Masters. Yoda says, “The development of a Jedi Knight, there is no accomplishment higher than. Dedicate your life, you will, to that and that alone.”
Our Padawan are being ignored in today’s world. Some of the Jedi Masters have forgotten their mission and have slipped over into the dark side. Embrace the Force and look downward to those who can follow, and assist them in their mission upward, by showing them the path. Network, mentor, train, develop, link…assume the role that your corporate mentors did for you as a young and enthusiastic Padawan.
“The dark side clouds everything. Impossible to see the future, it is. Turn away from the dark side, and embrace the Force.” --- Yoda, Jedi Grand Master