Upotential

Player Spotlight: Natalia Michell — Team Destination Uppsala

Strong mindset. Strong muscles. 💪🤩�Meet Natalia Michell, Project Manager in Communication and Marketing at Destination Uppsala — and a true powerhouse in the Mental Fitness Games 2025.

With her CrossFit energy and contagious drive, Natalia embodies what the Games are all about: showing up, staying curious, and pushing yourself — mentally and physically.
We caught up with Natalia to hear how she’s approaching the Games and what mental fitness means to her:

Q: You’ve been a CrossFit enthusiast for a very long time — how does that training mindset connect to mental fitness for you?

▶ ”For me, both CrossFit and the Mental Fitness Games are about challenging yourself to grow and evolve – especially when things feel tough or a little scary. In the box, you push your body to excel, but you also train your mind not to quit when it gets tough.

It’s the same mental challenge here: standing your ground, breathing, and finding that calm even when something feels difficult or uncomfortable – whether it’s during a tough workout, a big presentation in front of people, or in the busyness of everyday life.”

Q: What has been your biggest insight or “aha moment” so far during the Mental Fitness Games?

▶ ”Throughout the Mental Fitness Games, I’ve realized how powerful it can be to really pause, listen inward, and reflect before acting. I’ve discovered that being curious about my own thoughts and emotions can help me grow and evolve – both personally and as part of a team.

And that we shouldn’t underestimate the power of pen and paper – writing things down often makes thoughts and insights so much clearer.”

Q: If you had to describe your mental fitness mantra in one sentence – what would it be?

▶ ”Stay calm through the challenges”
Natalia, we love your energy and the way you inspire your team — and all of us — to keep growing and showing up. 🧠💓

Game on, Team Destination Uppsala! 🔥

Kick-offs are fun. Slides can inspire. One-offs can spark energy.
But culture? Culture is what you do every day. 💪🌱

Staying mentally fit isn’t about a yearly event or a single pep talk.
It’s about the mental pushups. The small improvements. The everyday growth.

That’s exactly what the Mental Fitness Games are built for.
Not slides. Not one-offs.
But a way of living the culture — one workout, one challenge, one moment of growth at a time.

Because the future doesn’t belong to the teams who kick off well.
It belongs to the ones who sweat the small stuff — the everyday habits, the tiny wins, the moments that add up to real growth. 🚀

Team Spotlight: Team Japan 🇯🇵

From a slow start to a powerful climb — Team Japan is proving that Mental Fitness Games is a marathon, not a sprint. 💪 Led by team captain Tom Kobayashi, they’ve been steadily catching up and are now pushing hard just outside of the podium.

That’s the spirit of the Games: resilience, consistency, and growing stronger together. 🚀 The energy in this team is contagious, and we can’t wait to see how far they’ll go in the next round.

We caught up with Tom to hear his thoughts:

Q: “Your team has such a unique composition — who’s in Team Japan, and what makes you click as a team?”

▶ We’re a foursome from global backgrounds (Japan, US, UK), and who now call Japan home. All of us are passionate about community and connections and bring to the table a diverse set of skills, such as psychology, L&D, music, entertainment, NPO, and accountancy. One thing we all have in common is being in multi-cultural family relationships and children, which always keeps us on our toes!

Q: “Looking ahead to the second month of the Games — what are you most excited about, and do you have a team mantra guiding you forward?”

▶ We’re excited about continuing our Mental Fitness Games journey, and especially racking up more live sessions, as this gives us the opportunity to meet other participants and make new connections. As for our mantra, we're using “Go from here!” - which means don't look back, go from here : )

Game on, Team Japan — the chase is getting real! 😻🏆🧠

Stockholm — time to break through those barriers. 💥

Next Wednesday, Oct 15, we’re going live again at our home turf — A house Katarinahuset — with one of our most popular workouts: Overcome Your Mental Barriers.

This isn’t a lecture. It’s a mental workout.
Together, we’ll challenge the stories that hold us back, test our limits, and turn resistance into power.

Member or not, join us for a session where you’ll train your growth mindset for real (not just talk about it). You’ll open up your perspective on discomfort and learn how to crush your mental barriers using a simple yet powerful technique.
And as always — you’ll walk away with your mental pushup. 😎🚀

You don’t need to have it all figured out — just show up.
The rest, we’ll train together. 🧠🔥

See you at the gym!

What if the secret to high performance wasn’t more grind… but more play? 🎮🧠

Athletes know this: you don’t just train harder — you play drills, you compete, you turn practice into a game. That’s how you grow, stay consistent, and actually enjoy the process.

So why in business do we treat mental fitness as something serious, heavy, or only for when things go wrong?

At Upotential, we flipped it. The Mental Fitness Games turn resilience, focus, and confidence into something playful and competitive. Because when it’s fun — it sticks.

💡 Work hard. Build your mental muscles. Play the mental fitness game.
Who’s ready to play?

Team Announcement: Gen Z Mind UF Joins the Mental Fitness Games 🤩🚀

October kicks off with more teams entering the arena — and this one brings fresh energy, bold perspectives, and the future of business.

Meet Gen Z Mind UF: a high school company on a mission to help businesses understand and connect with Generation Z. Through workshops, analyses, and research, they translate visions into insights that truly reach their generation.

Founded by Sophia von Schantz, Hanna Johansson Dreiwitz, Louise Anderman, and Stella Rutherhill, this powerhouse team shows that mindset and curiosity have no age limits.

The Games are about flexing mental muscles, building resilience, and shaping the future together — and who better to remind us of the future than Gen Z themselves? 🌟

Welcome to the arena, Gen Z Mind UF. We can’t wait to see how you’ll shake up the leaderboard. 💪🧠✨

Most companies measure stress. We measure mental strength. 💪🧠

Burnout surveys. Sick leave stats. Engagement scores. All focused on what’s broken.

But what if we flipped the script?
What if instead of asking ‘How stressed are you?’ … we ask: ‘How strong can you become?’

That’s exactly what the are built for — a proactive fitness test for your mental muscles. Not about repairing damage but about building resilience before the storm hits… and courage for when opportunity knocks.

The future doesn’t belong to the least stressed.
It belongs to the most mentally fit. 🚀

Team Spotlight – Emma Wittenberg (Wenström), Team Captain at OPX Partners

OPX Partners just climbed into the top three in the Mental Fitness Games Team Division — and behind the momentum is team captain Emma, a sharp and inspiring leader who knows how to blend strategy, energy, and just the right amount of fun.

We caught up with Emma for a quick-fire interview on leadership, motivation, and mental fitness:

Q: What made you decide to lead a team in the Mental Fitness Games?
▶ “We talk a lot about performance and well-being in the workplace, and this was a chance to actually train it — together. I loved the idea of combining personal development with team energy. “

Q: What’s one thing your team is doing differently to stay motivated?
▶ “We’re trying to keep the pressure low and the energy high. A big part of that has been the hybrid model — mixing online momentum with a couple of in person sessions with Catrin leading workouts in our office.”

Q: What does mental fitness mean to you — as a leader and as a human?
▶ “For me, it’s about creating space to think clearly and prioritize. And to choose how to feel in different situations — instead of just reacting. It makes me a better leader, and honestly, a better person, friend, and mother.”

Q: What’s one insight from your team so far that you’d like to share?
▶ "It’s been eye-opening how small, concrete tools can spark real change — not just at work, but in life. And when that happens, it often leads to something bigger."

📣 Big thanks to Emma and the OPX Partners team for leading with clarity, connection, and curiosity. You’re showing us what strong mental fitness leadership looks like.

Player Announcement – Anna-Greta Joins the Solo Division 🎉

We’re super happy to welcome Anna-Greta to the Games — a purpose-driven powerhouse, breathwork trainer, and one of those people who knows that personal development is never a finished project.

She’s been part of our journey for a long time, and the fact that she’s now joining on the player side says everything about how seriously she takes her own mental fitness.

With her entrepreneurial spirit, deep curiosity, and kick-ass breathwork skills, she’s on a mission to help others operate from their highest potential — and she’s bringing that same energy to the Mental Fitness Games.

"I'm joining the Games to keep my own mental fitness in top shape — but also to connect, grow, and exchange energy with others on the same journey." – Anna-Greta

Welcome to the Solo Division, Anna-Greta! We’re so excited to compete and grow with you. 🤩

Let’s go! 💥

Player Announcement: Helen & Rebecca Jump Into Team By Barb 🤩�
From a tennis court in San Diego back in 2007… to the Mental Fitness Games 2025. ✨

Meet Helen (Aneheim Consulting) and Rebecca (Nigel Wright Group) — two tennis enthusiasts who know a thing or two about grit, strategy, and having fun on and off the court.

Now, alongside By Barb, they’re joining forces as one powerhouse team: three companies, one mission — to flex their mental muscles, connect, and grow together with their respective companies and business network boosting them along the journey!

This is exactly what the Games are about: building new connections and turning shared passions into shared progress.

"Tennis connected us many years ago, and now mental fitness is doing the same — expanding our business network, our connection, and our mindset. Joining the Games with By Barb feels like the perfect way to grow together on and off the court." — Rebecca & Helen

Welcome to the arena, Helen and Rebecca — your team just became a serious contender! 🚀🧠💪

Player Announcement: Ebba von Schantz joins the Mental Fitness Games 2025

Meet Ebba — MSc student in Mechatronics Engineering at Lund University, sharp mind, natural connector, and one of those people who lights up every room she enters. 🧠 🌟

Whether she’s exploring the future of AI, navigating both waves and opportunities as a skilled sailor, or gaining experience at companies like Einride, Stena Recycling, and Arla Foods, Ebba brings curiosity, warmth, and drive to everything she does. She knows that the real edge in a fast-changing world isn’t just knowledge — it’s the ability to connect with others and grow together.💛

In her own words:
“I believe mental fitness is the skill of the future. It’s about staying sharp, resilient, and at the same time connecting with others — because that’s the real superpower.”

We’re thrilled to welcome Ebba into the Solo Division. With her energy, intelligence, and passion for connection, she’s exactly what the Mental Fitness Games are all about. 🚀