How many times have you heard the slogan, “Just Do It”? Have you ever wondered how that slogan came about or why over twenty years later that slogan still resonates with us?
During a classroom conversation the topic of the power of focus came up and how we have so many activities and ideas in our lives that sometimes it can be hard to focus on those which really matter.
The conversation reminded me of a book by Scott Bedbury, “A new brand world”. Scott was working for Nike at the time the “Just do it” campaign began. In his book he writes about one of the current problems as: “Consumers were changing. Aging baby boomers were becoming more fitness- rather than sports-driven. A new generation of youth was as interested in skateboards and mountain bikes as they were in playing traditional sports.” Seem familiar?
Added to this was the fact that “consumers already knew as much as they wanted to know about fitness. And that most if not all of them were ridden by guilt about their failures to live up to their potential.” And so it was in this educated consumer environment that the “Just Do It” slogan was born to remind us of the fact we know the right things to do, now we have to focus and just do them.
Yup still resonates with me.