Sameer Ahuja’s Post

I am a coach, and I don’t mean a football coach. This is a video about football ⚽. It is also a video about: 🔸 teamwork,  🔸 trying,  🔸 failing,  🔸 persisting,  🔸 enduring,  🔸 falling and getting up again, etc. And more than anything, 𝐇𝐎𝐏𝐄 ☀️. 𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫. 𝐎𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐌 has been identified as a key factor of 𝐄𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, enhancing 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 and boosting 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 and 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲. 📈 I 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞 you enjoy it! 🙂 P.S. One of England’s hopes is called 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐚𝐦. I do not promote Adidas or the England football team, but I love the Beatles song! #Teamwork #Coaching #EmotionalIntelligence #Optimism #StressTolerance #Flexibility

A Provocative Take on What it Really Means to Win Nike's latest Olympics campaign, "Winning Isn't For Everyone," has sparked some intense debate on the net by delving into the raw, unfiltered drive needed to be the best. The ad portrays sports superstars as ruthlessly pursuing their goals with a single-minded focus to the top. While the title may seem counterintuitive, I believe this ad conveys an important and brave message that we need to hear. The depiction of sports superstars as ruthless in pursuit of their goals with a single-minded approach and razor-sharp focus feels quite realistic. We see this "cold, pitiless approach to winning" among the top 1% of athletes - a steely resolve that doesn't give opponents a chance, even when they're down. Phrases like "What's mine is mine and what's yours is mine" reflect the confident, even cocky attitude of champions who will stop at nothing to win (within the rules, of course). After all, being #2 is quickly forgotten. This seemingly counterintuitive central message however has its resonance in the corporate landscape as well. At the highest levels of business, the top performers often display a cold, single-minded focus on victory. Lines like "What's mine is mine and what's yours is mine" capture the confident, even cocky attitude of those who are willing to do whatever it takes to come out on top. In the corporate world, where the competition is fierce and the stakes are high, having a winning mindset can make all the difference. Team members who are willing to go the extra mile, who have an unwavering determination to succeed, and who are able to maintain their composure under pressure, are the ones who often rise to the top. However, this ad reminds me that the most meaningful victories often come not from external accolades, but from the inner work of ruthless preparation and resilience. It's a refreshingly vulnerable and inspiring take on what it truly means to be a "winner" in life. At the same time, the ad serves as a reminder that success should not come at the expense of ethics or sportsmanship. True champions are able to balance their ruthless drive to win with a sense of respect for their opponents and a broader understanding of what it means to be a leader. In a landscape where success hinges on unwavering determination and composure under pressure, a winning mindset can be a game-changer. The ad prompts reflection on the inner work of preparation and resilience that underpins meaningful victories, emphasizing the balance between a ruthless drive to win while maintaining a healthy perspective along the way. What are your thoughts on this thought-provoking campaign? I found it to be a bold and compelling perspective. #winningisnotforeveryone #winningmindset #corporateworld #pursuitofexcellence https://lnkd.in/g9S_Ztd5

WINNING ISN'T FOR EVERYONE | AM I A BAD PERSON? ------------------------------------ Have you watched the new Nike ad featuring a bunch of sporting legends in action? It's thought provoking and asks a rhetorical question “Am I a bad person? Think about it, sporting legends are specially wired, they are single minded, they are deceptive(tricks the opposition), they are obsessive (about winning) and they are selfish(shows no mercy for the opposition). They don’t show empathy(on the field), they are never satisfied( e.g. Ronaldo and Djokovic are still going on after 20 years),they act irrationally (they are not fazed by impossible goals) and they show no remorse (when they push the envelope) etc   It’s just fact that not everyone can be a WINNER, the best will always emerge by beating the rest , its the same in business, in sports, in music, in movies,in philanthropy everywhere you look. That’s because excellence is not equally created and outliers always create disproportionate value, that’s the way it has always been. So the key question for growth is how can we create more winners in our orbit, what are the cultural and leadership tenets that enable excellence without creating moral walls ?  It’s worth thinking about this no matter what your field of work is … Our point of view (ScalerZ) :  #1 Excellence starts with ambition and leadership. Think about President Kennedy’s national goal of putting a man on the moon which led to the Apollo program and the rest is history  #2 Setting a culture where failure is not taboo is critical to create a funnel of good ideas. Successful companies, countries and communities have high tolerance for failure as far as ideas are concerned, this in turn attracts a diverse set of ideas from a broad base of talented people. Failure is often just a pitstop .JK Rowling’s Harry Potter was rejected by a dozen publishers before it got published and became a bestseller. Walt Disney was fired from a Missouri newspaper for not being creative enough. One of his early ventures called Laugh-o-gram Studios also went bankrupt.  #3 Very Important to remember that super high achievers( folks who create disproportionate impact) in any field are pure outliers, they actually get oxygen from other talented people and they thrive in a culture of freedom(of expression) and experimentation. One of the key success factors of Silicon Valley in the early days was the concentration of talent, capital and ambition in the geographical area between San Jose, California, and San Francisco as a result of Frederick Terman, the legendary dean of Stanford engineering school during the 1940s and 1950s. Stanford a university is arguably the world's best startup accelerator with a track record of 3700 Founders and 2800 companies founded by Stanford alums( Jensen Huang, Phil Knight, Reed Hastings, Sergey Brin, William Hewlett, David Packard etc) WATCH THE AD #winner #outlier #failure #ambition #leadership #startups ScalerZ ANIL KUMAR Susan G. Hunt

The buzz will (rightly) be that Stormzy made a youth club. What I also see is someone listening and making use of real insights to produce IMPACT + BUZZ. Too many times, I’ve uncovered unique insights, developed ideas, provided unique angles that give agencies & brands the chance to create impact and conversation (especially on Gen Z briefs), but they’re shut down in favour of (IMO) old-thinking. Please don’t take this a rant, it’s actually inspiration to do better… purpose can be glamorous and pop-culture-sexy if you let it. Hire people who actively participate in and respect the people in the cultures that you want to stand out in (not just observe/ FAN/ STAN and borrow from it). Why do I care? Personally, this mindset of ‘serving an audience rather than ourselves’ is what keeps me inspired and hopeful that I’ll continue to make cool, impactful (for all stakeholders) and meaningful work in this industry.

Right to Play: Tobi Ogundipe - thanks for sharing 🙏 Love this Stormzy /Adidas collaboration, it is a masterclass in how brands can impact communities & society positively. Real & authentic brand purpose - back of the net ⚽️ 🥅 from me. I admire this as I am from south London, it speaks to my work in the customer experience + Brand Equity + DE&I space. It concretely demonstrates the power of brand. If you want to geek out on why there is a symbiotic relationship with brand, purpose & community ⬇️ It’s branding & proposition would contribute, in some measure 📏 , to what Kantar (also a unit of measure) would describe as an important role of brand’s pre-disposition to the target 🎯 audience. The initiative associates Brand Adidas & Brand Stormzy as being imbued with super cool 😎 purpose & equitable opportunity. The outcome is positive brand pre- disposition. Not your average youth centre; it reframes the whole idea 💡 from passive youth support to tangible youth opportunity. The branding is bold, the facilities are cool, & the community will embrace this as a place to go with FOMO. This is a great example of how brands positively show up ⬆️ in the DE&I space. Importantly, how they must be authentic = have a right to play. This association will get locked in to the subconscious of different consumers & target audiences. Through Kantar’s Meaningful, Different & Salient (MDS) framework you can understand this & learn about a Brands blue print for growth. If you are serious about growth with purpose & how to reset, or reaffirm, your brand blue print & North Star direction we cordially invite you to: Blue Print for Brand Growth webinar https://lnkd.in/emjSCaPu #stormzy #adidas #diversity

What's the sport game for your team? That one event everyone cheers for, uniting people despite our differences. When we watch World Cup, Olympics, or NBA Playoffs, or right now, the Asian Games, we see how these moments unite us. Differences like politics, age, and gender are not barriers. (Sometimes even the unhappy history with others can be put aside as well) As long as we cheer for the same team, we're all on the same boat. 🌍 🙌 Expecting team members to treat the team's success like a die-hard Golden State Warriors fan in the 2024 NBA playoffs might be unrealistic. Yet, do your team's talents genuinely care about team's success? Does it make them proud to be part of the squad? If not, could you create something that makes people, or at least yourself, look forward to this Q4 at work? Perhaps it's a pro bono project that makes you feel your work matters. Or maybe it's a year-end event that gives you a chance to interact with colleagues from different offices. It could even be the thrill of landing a challenging new client, with the promise of double incentives as a year-end gift. 🎁 In this final quarter of 2023, we still have time to make things happen. It might bring a fresh experience with colleagues or simply find new motivation to excel at what you do. Let’s welcome the season with some spices you like! 🚀 #TeamUnity #WorkplaceSuccess #YearEnd #Q4 #NewBeginnings #Asiangames

People are annoyed by Nike's Olympics ad. Calling out the “potential risks of promoting an overly competitive mindset without balance”. I feel like I’m stating the obvious here, but balance has no place in this story. That’s the point! Anyone who has studied the behaviours of any of the athletes in the ad knows they haven’t achieved what they’ve achieved as a result of “balance”. Their success is a direct result of sheer grit, relentless determination, physical (and mental) pain and sacrifice. This is a window into the minds of elite athletes, competing at the absolute highest level. They have tunnel vision. One focus. One objective. To be the best. To win. To be exceptional at anything, you have to forgo balance. Hence why it’s not for everyone. We applaud people that are successful in achieving variety and “balance” in their lives. So, why can’t we applaud those that give up everything to focus on one thing, to achieve their version of success? I’m bored of the relentless battering of hustle culture. We’ve gone from glorifying it to demonizing it. Let’s reinstate a bit of balance 😉 #Nike #Winningisntforeveryone #Olympics #hustleculture #advertising #brandcomms

In the news of the last few weeks, we can find a clear protagonist: the Olympic Games. Every four years I surprise myself by investing time in watching sports I barely knew about, or I become a fervent fan of athletes whose names I didn't know.   But the Olympics is not just a sporting spectacle or a competition for medals, it's a showcase of what human determination, resilience and teamwork can achieve.   I like to compare them to what a team effort in a company entails, the constant work, the honing of skills, the preparation for moments of increased pressure, the professional and personal growth involved in overcoming goals and, of course, knowing how to overcome defeats.   Both in the Games and in a company, the feeling of union, of team, and the celebration of teamwork, the alignment with the objectives, and being aware of how much each piece of that gear is adding up is vital.  In Plain Concepts it is something fundamental in our day to day, and a fundamental pillar that is allowing us to achieve greater efficiency, productivity, innovate and continue to grow as a team and with our customers year after year.  We don't have medals, but we do have great achievements together. #WeArePlainers Happy summer team and network! 

“You don’t get to decide where your story begins.   BUT you do get to decide where it ends!” Did you notice the name tags? Neymar Jr, Serena Williams, LeBron James, Mo Farah, Zhou Qi… They went for the stars to become stars. What’s your aspiration in life? What gives you energy to happily go on? Be it stressful or not. What feels meaningful to you? Aim for the stars.  You can do it.  YES! Just do it! If there’s a will there’s a way. Don’t be afraid of taking or asking for support. #leadershipdevelopment #strongandkindleaders #positiveleadership #growthmindset #inspiration https://lnkd.in/eDyNThc5

Shaq just became president of Reebok's president of basketball, and it’s going to make him a billionaire. The most dominant and hilarious human in National Basketball Association (NBA) history has already built an empire worth over $600M. But when we talk about what he can bring to a brand, the benefits are virtually priceless. Reebok is looking to make a resurgence in 2025 with a new launch behind Shaq as their President of Basketball. Right now there are literally 0 NBA players signed to Reebok. Once upon a time, Shaq himself walked away from a $40M Reebok deal to make his own brand of affordable shoes that sold to millions in Walmart. And since then, Reebok was never the same. Allen Iverson just became the new Vice President of Reebok. People forget that Allen Iverson nearly went bankrupt after his career, but it was his lifetime deal with Reebok that kept him afloat. And today, Reebok has hired him to carry his legacy even further. Shaq and AI have one primary job: leverage their connections to bring current players and retired legends from the NBA into the brand. And the payout can be huge. For reference, Reebok was acquired in 2005 by adidas and then taken over by Authentic Brands Group for $3.89B in 2022. That’s Reebok’s starting point today. And now they add Superman and The Answer. Absolutely stacked. #business #sports #nba