“March Madness” is one of the most recognizable sports brands as far as “events” go – globally- up there w the likes of Super Bowl, World Cup, & the Olympics.
It’s “madness” bc for a stretch in March (rt now), we have 64 teams going ALL out, giving everything they have, in a bracket style, one-&-done tournament…where games are happening one after the other. It’s chaotic, game times overlap, but for sports fans, we love every minute of the heart-pounding action.
And here, Powerade, just at the time our world needs it, chose March Madness as the perfect backdrop to launch their “Pause is Power” campaign. I want to emphasize, it’s not just a slogan. In their commercials:
Notable global sports personalities including the likes of Tom Daley- British Olympic driver, Chris Webber- NBA basketball player, Simeone Biles- US Gymnastics Champion, and Tottenham Hotspur manager- Antonio Conte, are all featured.
– A soccer team led by Conte pauses to recline in chairs at half time of a match…
– A football team pauses in the middle of a rainy practice do some ballet…
– A basketball team pauses at a timeout to collect themselves in a game of rock, paper, scissor…
– A diving team led by Daley pauses to learn knitting as a group…
The message? We PERFORM better, when it’s not “go, go, go” all the time. We can get a refresh to perform at an even higher level, when we take a moment to pause. To have big time athletes & sports personalities say & do that (even when some of the examples are ridiculous, for the purposes of humor & entertainment) is exactly what we need as a world right now.
I’m a huge Jets fan. When our current head coach (who I love btw), took over, his mantra he shared w the team & fans was: “All Gas. No Breaks.” As a Jets fan, I loved it. As a MH advocate I cringed.
This Powerade campaign NAILS it. You can be a high level performer in anything – sports or any pursuit, & yet finding time to pause, reconnect, get mindful, be in the moment, power wash your brain – you end up in the long run even MORE successful.
Let’s stop promoting burnout. Let’s start promoting the refreshing pause. Thank you, Powerade!