Joy Scales New Heights at The Explorers Club

NEW YORK, Sept. 30, 2015 /CNW/ - Scotch whisky brand Johnnie Walker^® last night celebrated the launch of its new Joy Will Take You Further campaign, with an exclusive event at the New York City headquarters of The Explorers Club, the world-famous non-profit organisation. 

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The campaign champions the power of joy in driving progress and the event featured a unique panel discussion on the potential of joy.

Among those speaking at the gathering were: Michael Strahan, pro football Hall of Famer and Live! with Kelly and Michael co-host; Doug Ellin, screenwriter and creator of the HBO television series and feature film Entourage; Eva Håkansson, inventor and world electric-powered motorcycle speed record holder; and Dr. Matt Killingsworth, leading psychologist and happiness expert.

Brian Cox, Director, Scotch whisky North America at Diageo, said of the event: "We feel privileged to be holding this event in the inspirational halls of The Explorers Club, a group which believes that Joy Will Take You Further. The study of joy and progress - something that we call Joynomics - shows us that happiness makes success more likely.

"Members of The Explorers Club have explored the furthest reaches of land, air, sea and space and having stood on the summit of Everest and the surface of the moon, are living proof of how finding joy in our everyday lives and pursuits can help us achieve more than we thought possible."

Michael Strahan championed the impact that happiness has had on his progress: "If your starting point is happiness, there is no limit to what you can achieve. The turning point in my career was adopting a more positive outlook and reconnecting with the enjoyment of genuinely 'playing' the game. Making that decision gave me a new impetus and new energy."

The Joy Will Take You Further event saw the premiere of a new experiment developed in partnership with Dr. Matt Killingsworth, a US-based psychologist and scientist who studies human happiness. The experiment - called Can Joy Improve Performance? - showed how golfers could boost the accuracy of their shots when positively, rather than negatively, primed by their coach.

The results were impressive, with 100% of participants showing increased accuracy when positively primed. On average the accuracy of participants increased by 45%.

Commenting on the experiment, Dr. Killingsworth said: "What this experiment shows us - albeit with a limited sample size - is that having a joyful perspective on the task in hand can actually boost our performance."

Can Joy Improve Performance? is the first in a series of experiments that the brand will release in the weeks ahead.

Cox added: "Johnnie Walker has been a progressive and innovative brand since it was founded by John Walker in 1820. Our journey from Scotland to the four corners of the world has shown us that finding happiness along the way can help us reach our goals. This experiment is just one example of the increasing evidence which supports our belief that Joy Will Take You Further."

The Can Joy Improve Performance? experiment can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/johnniewalker

The new Joy Will Take You Further film from Johnnie Walker can be viewed here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9R9YtaoYAE

#joynomics

#JoyWillTakeYouFurther

Notes to Editor: 

About Diageo 

Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands across spirits, beer and wine categories. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, J&B, Buchanan's and Windsor whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.

Diageo is a global company, and our products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world.  The company is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO).  For more information about Diageo, our people, our brands, and performance, visit us at http://www.diageo.com. Visit Diageo's global responsible drinking resource, http://www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice.

Celebrating life, every day, everywhere.

Enjoy Johnnie Walker responsibly.

The JOHNNIE WALKER, KEEP WALKING, BLENDERS' ROOMS, JOYNOMICS and JOY WILL TAKE YOU FURTHER words, the Striding Figure device and associated logos are trademarks © John Walker & Sons 2015. 

About The Explorers Club 

The Explorers Club was founded in New York City 1904 by a group of the world's leading explorers of the time. It is a multidisciplinary, not for profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to scientific exploration of land, sea, air, and space by supporting research and education in the physical, natural and biological sciences. The Club's members have been responsible for an illustrious series of famous firsts: First to the North Pole, first to the South Pole, first to the summit of Mount Everest, first to the deepest point in the ocean, and first to the surface of the moon. With 3,000 members worldwide, the organization is headquartered at 46 East 70th Street, New York, N.Y. 10021. For more information about The Explorers Club, its history, and its mission, find out more at: http://www.explorers.org

Under a licensing agreement between Diageo and The Explorers Club, each purchase from the Johnnie Walker® Explorers' Club Collection^™ - a series of blended whiskies sold exclusively in global duty free outlets - helps to support the work of The Explorers Club.

THE EXPLORERS CLUB, THE EXPLORERS CLUB FLAG and associated logos are trade marks of The Explorers Club, a global non-profit organisation headquartered in New York City.

SOURCE Johnnie Walker