The Energy of a Dope Thinker: Leading with Intention, Urgency, and Purpose

A few weeks ago, I sat across from Kris Wright, Nike’s VP of NSW Footwear, moderating his keynote, “What Authenticity Is and Isn’t” at our inaugural Dope Thinkers Only conference. It was one of those rare moments when the energy in the room shifts. Not because what he said was not only groundbreaking, but because he reminded me of something essential.

As Kris spoke about what it truly means to lead with authenticity, I found myself reflecting on how far we’ve come at Kulur Group—and how much further we intend to go. Leadership, for me, has never just been about strategy or quarterly goals. It’s about energy. The energy we bring to our teams. The energy we transfer to our clients. The energy we sustain when circumstances test our resolve.

That reflection reminded me of something foundational to who we are: The Energy of a Dope Thinker.

The nine tenets below weren’t drafted in a boardroom or pulled from a management book. They emerged from experience including our collective wins, setbacks, late nights, and defining moments. They guide how we lead, how we build, and how we show up. Today, I want to share them through the lens of leadership. Because at their core, these principles are not just about operating a business, but about sustaining a movement.

1. Hungry

“Sustain energy to remain optimistic when adversity sets in.”

Leadership is not for the faint of heart. There will be seasons when the road is smooth, and there will be times when every day feels like pushing a boulder uphill. Hunger keeps you optimistic in those uphill seasons.

For me, this principle is about staying proactive, not reactive. When campaigns miss their marks or client expectations shift overnight, we don’t retreat—we lean in. Hunger fuels perseverance. It reminds us that great work doesn’t come from comfort zones; it comes from resilience and curiosity. Leaders must model that energy because teams absorb whatever their leaders project.

2. Humble

“Maintain relationships with audiences even when your business scales. Remain committed to your why.”

Scaling can make you forget why you started. It’s easy to get caught up in growth metrics and forget the communities, clients, and audiences that believed in you when you were still figuring things out.

At Kulur Group, humility means listening as much as we speak. It means remembering that our role isn’t to dictate culture, but to be in conversation with it. I remind myself constantly: the moment we think we’re “too big” to engage authentically is the moment we start drifting away from our purpose.

3. Teachable

“Be vertical and audience obsessed. Suspend your own assumptions and pursue clarity.”

The best leaders are lifelong students. Markets shift. Culture evolves. Audiences surprise you. If you’re not actively listening and learning, you’re falling behind.

Being teachable isn’t about lacking confidence; it’s about recognizing that ego is the enemy of clarity. Some of the most impactful strategic pivots we’ve made came from moments where we stopped talking and started listening—to data, to communities, to our own teams.

As leaders, we must set the tone that learning is a strength, not a sign of weakness.

4. Something to Prove

“In a world of sameness, what makes your ‘why’ so special?”

This is the fire that drives innovation. In a crowded marketplace where everyone’s fighting for attention, having “something to prove” isn’t about insecurity. It’s about purpose.

Our “why” is what separates Kulur Group from the noise. It’s why we build platforms that elevate challenger voices, why we take bold creative risks, and why we refuse to blend in. Leadership requires keeping that “something to prove” energy alive, even after the accolades start coming in.

5. Willing to Serve

“Be relentlessly customer focused.”

Service is not subservience. It’s strategic clarity. If we don’t serve our audiences well, someone else will.

Leadership through service means removing ego and centering others’ needs. It means asking: What does this client actually need right now? What does this audience value most? Not what we want to deliver.

Every leader at Kulur Group is expected to embody this commandment. We don’t lead from pedestals; we lead from the trenches, shoulder to shoulder with our teams and partners.

6. Sense of Urgency

“Delivering what your audience needs with urgency.”

Momentum matters. Opportunities have a shelf life. A sense of urgency isn’t about chaos or burnout, but about respecting the pace of culture.

In leadership, urgency means decisive action. It’s knowing when to move fast, when to iterate in real time, and when to remove bottlenecks so teams can thrive. Some of our best cultural moments happened because we moved when others hesitated.

7. Allergic to the Plateau

“Do not rest on the laurels of past or current success. Always seek to understand to improve.”

Complacency is a quiet killer. Success can make you comfortable, and comfort can make you slow.

“Allergic to the plateau” means we treat every success as a checkpoint, not a finish line. As a leader, this requires vulnerability and the willingness to ask, “What can we do better? What are we missing?” Even when things are going well, we keep scanning the horizon for ways to grow.

8. Standards

“High expectations are critical.”

Standards shape culture more than slogans ever will. If leaders don’t enforce high standards, mediocrity fills the vacuum.

At Kulur Group, we’re not chasing perfection, but we do demand excellence. That means giving honest feedback, holding ourselves accountable, and refusing to lower the bar when things get tough. Leadership is setting that tone, consistently.

9. Resilient

“Stay consistent in the face of adversity and challenges.”

Every journey has breaking points especially moments where the easy choice is to slow down, compromise, or walk away. Resilience is what keeps you steady.

For me, resilience isn’t just internal grit; it’s collective strength. It’s the unwavering belief that we can endure setbacks without losing our spirit. It’s the ability to absorb pressure and keep the energy moving forward.

Leading with Energy

As Kris Wright spoke that day, I realized how deeply these beliefs are woven into how we operate. They’re not posters on a wall or slides in a deck—they’re lived values. When challenges arise, they guide our response. When opportunities appear, they shape our strategy. When we succeed, they remind us to stay grounded.

Leadership is often defined by titles or strategies, but in truth, it’s defined by energy. How you show up. How you inspire others to follow. How you sustain momentum when no one’s watching.

These Energy Principles are our blueprint. They’re how we lead ourselves, our teams, and our communities. And they’re my personal reminder that authentic leadership isn’t about perfection—it’s about consistency, conviction, and the energy you bring to every moment.

— Nick Love