25 years, 25 quotes, 25 topics for reflection
Johan Cruijff’s quotes are as numerous as they are famous. For Archetype, we chose this one: “Football is simple. But playing simple football is often the hardest thing to do.” You responded in great numbers—and we thank you for that. Your reactions inspired this article.
Why does this statement by Johan Cruijff resonate so strongly? Because of its simplicity. Too often, we tend to overcomplicate things. And yet, most things are simpler than we think. There’s nothing like working with enthusiasm and carrying out your missions in a spontaneous, organic way. With this mindset, everything seems to fall into place.
What do we mean by that? Let’s return to Johan Cruijff for our first example.
Play to win
Johan Cruijff is one of the greatest football players—and coaches—of all time. Throughout his career, he led Ajax Amsterdam and Barcelona to the top, winning the Champions League with both teams. What was the secret to his success? He always emphasized that to win a match, you have to score goals. So, he promoted attacking football. Nothing more. Play to win and score more goals than your opponent—that’s the recipe for victory. It doesn’t get any simpler than that.
At Archetype, we’ve noticed that managers often forget the virtues of simplicity. They implement overly complex tactical systems that are difficult to apply and fail to deliver the desired results.
Be a listener
Not everyone is Johan Cruijff, but we all have the ability to listen. So why do so many people still struggle to communicate? Why is it so difficult to connect with colleagues, managers, partners, children, or neighbors? Yet, communication is simple. It just requires mutual listening, empathy, and assertiveness. Assertiveness isn’t about constantly being on the attack, like in football. It’s about expressing your opinion constructively and as objectively as possible, while taking the other person’s point of view into account.
Live simply
For our final example, we refer to “Rendez-vous en terre inconnue”, a program broadcast on France Télévision. The show invites French celebrities to spend several weeks living among remote tribal communities around the world. Confronted with basic living conditions, they open their eyes and become aware of different realities—always with great admiration for these amazing people. Why? Because living simply makes them happy.
And in business?
Let’s go back to the three elements you highlighted: choosing simplicity, communicating with others, and living simply.
When you think about it, these three elements are the building blocks of marketing. They are the golden rules for both marketing gurus and front-line salespeople. Marketing is the ultimate example of simplicity—one that we unfortunately tend to overcomplicate. If you succeed in sales, you’re definitely applying these three fundamentals: listening to your client, asking follow-up questions, returning to the basics when things aren’t clear, and most importantly, responding to the client’s needs. Starting with the product is a flawed approach. Targeting the wrong group—like young readers of a women’s magazine to sell a luxury car—is a guaranteed miss. To win, there’s only one starting point: the customer.
Organic approach
In conclusion, what lesson can we draw from your reactions to our quote? Keep it simple and less is more—two core management concepts. Both are based on the same principle: simplicity is already complex enough. Use your basic common sense to lay down clear foundations. Only then, from this solid base, should you build more elaborate structures. Before doing so, always ask yourself whether such complexity is needed by the customer or just to tick a box.
When you work with enthusiasm and a desire to do things right, the pieces of the puzzle fall naturally into place. That’s what we call the organic approach at Archetype. Nothing is forced; everything flows. It’s as if all the components naturally align to create the greatest possible impact.
Marc Diamant
Managing Director, Archetype
