When you dream with eyes wide open- you can become anything

What happens when you get 50 of the brightest young minds from around the world to congregate at one place? You see sparks fly! Give them a real-world business challenge to solve and watch out for the fireworks! Last week I was witness to this spectacle.

Future Leaders League (FLL) is the annual cornerstone event of Unilever, in quest to spot the future leaders who will make a difference. This year Unilever International (UI), the white space division of the behemoth, sponsored the FLL. UI serves the underserved consumer—the wealthy diaspora living in corners of the world. I was present as part of the jury at ‘The Pitch’ in Central London, where 20 formidable teams from around the world battled it out for glory.

Sharing what I observed and how I felt. Read on…

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1.????? Fire in the belly, sparkle in the eye!

The room was a sea of young faces. I could almost sense the blood rushing and the hearts pounding. They had smartly masked the anticipation behind the bright smiles. Clearly, not winning was not an option. They were here to win!

They wanted everything, everywhere, all at once. Not prepared to settle for anything less. All or nothing!

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2.????? Go over the Horizon!

How far would you go for a case study? The task was hinged on winning with the Philippino diaspora in the USA and UAE, bringing them the taste of home. A team sneaked into a Philippino kitchen; another reached out to the target group on the other side of the globe. One even hopped on a flight—all in the quest to do a consumer immersion to craft a compelling solution to the case study.

Every team worked tirelessly and went the distance, over the horizon!

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3.????? From knowing nothing to learning everything

Lady’s Choice—what is that? That was the starting point for most.

They turned every stone and harnessed every piece of insight they could lay their hands on. The girls and boys worked hard and smart—and it showed. To the point they could write a thesis on how to win the hearts of overseas Filipinos with their favorite mayonnaise from home very far away. Extensive use of AI to put together a compelling case—that was a treat to the senses.

In the end, the insights and recommendations left us on the edge of our seats.

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4.????? Competition was fierce, Cheers were louder!

‘How are you feeling?’ is a question I love to ask. When I asked around, the answer was almost always, ‘We are having the best time of our lives.' The kids had flown in from every corner of the world and met people from backgrounds as diverse as one could imagine. It was their first taste of corporate life—and how. A few hours ago, they shook hands and took a selfie with the CEO of UI. ?

The exuberance spilled over in the evening when they laughed and forged friendships over a game of table tennis and pizza. They had the best time of their lives!

5.????? Chin up for life

A competition has a winner and many losers. Or does it?

There were the heartbreaks of elimination and not coming out on top. They were down, but never out. A team had just lost one of their mates in a tragic accident a month ago. Yet they chose to move ahead. These young adults are prepared to take on life. You are all winners!

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When the presentations were over, the mercury soared as the jury debated in private. They had a difficult task cut out to choose a winner from amongst the winners. In the end, for the first time in over a decade, there was a tie—the trophy was shared between the teams from Egypt and Indonesia. Team India came close runners-up.

Today they are only students with a burning ambition and endless dreams. Tomorrow they will become CEOs of multinational corporations, founders of Unicorns, build the next big app, eradicate world hunger, or anything else they wish to become.

Because when you work hard and manifest, dreams come true! On behalf of Unilever, we wish you all the best for the journey called life!?