Shoe Dog is a memoir written by Phil Knight, co-founder of Nike. The story unfolds the origin of an iconic brand “Nike” and through Phil’s journey you get to know how a global brand was born and brought up like a baby. The book is a realistic story of an entrepreneur who has faced ups and downs throughout his journey but kept going until he reached his goal.
The book begins with Dawn and ends with Night. Instead of chapters it is divided into years, from 1962 to 1980. Dawn is when, 24 years old Phil Knight realized that in spite of earning a master’s degree from Stanford University and serving in US army for 1 year he hadn’t experienced anything of life. At that point he had an aching sense that life is short as a morning run and it should have some meaning, and purpose. On the first page itself you’ll find an inspiring quote, “The cowards never started” and the weak died along the way”. Soaked in his sweat, he thought of a crazy idea and that was his eureka moment. Phil had lot of fantasies like becoming journalist, novelist, great statesman but his ultimate aim was to become an athlete in which he couldn’t excel. But deep inside he always wanted to stay connected with sports such that without being an athlete he could feel what athletes feel. He wanted to play all the time, instead of working or enjoy working like a sport. In this book, Phil not only opens up about his business life but he throws light on his personal life too. Phil has beautifully narrated the conflicts and struggles he has come across and his relentless efforts for building Nike into a powerful brand.
What I learned from this book
1) Follow your passion: Converting his final year project work into a business idea sounded crazy for many but it was Phil Knight’s passion. His presentation was about how Japanese cameras captured the camera market that was once dominated by the German’s. Knight argued in his paper that Japanese running shoes might capture the shoe market in the same way. At that time Adidas (German company) was the leading company in shoe market. His idea was to import running shoes from Japanese companies and sell them in US. He advises younger generation to seek a calling and not to run after a career hastily. He says that if you follow your calling then the disappointments and exhaustion will be easy to bear and it will act as fuel instead of pain.
2) Believe in your dream: Phil says his best ever and only advice is even if people call your idea crazy just believe in it and keep going. Like a runner who runs continuously because stopping scares him. Similarly we should go on without stopping until we reach our destination. Phil mentions that he was not a good salesman. He could not sell encyclopedias. He was slightly better in selling mutual funds but he didn’t like that too. Then why he could sell shoes very easily. The reason was his belief in running. He felt that if people would go out for running every day the world would become a better place.
3) Have patience: While he was on his world tour he made a deal with Onitsuka, a company in Japan, manufacturing Tiger shoes. Phil ordered 12 pair of running shoes for 50 dollars which was paid by his father. He had to wait for 1 year to get his first shipment of shoes from Japan. He didn’t lose hope, instead he took up a job of an accountant to earn some money. When the shoes arrived he had no shop so he started selling them to different track clubs from the boot of his car. He invested his full salary into his shoe business and picked up many jobs including teaching job. During this critical phase he didn’t give up and eventually his patience paid off.
4) Take risks: Phil Knight never feared failures. He has mentioned in his book, “We had faith that after failure we would learn from it and perform better”. There are many lines in the book that inspire you to take risks in your business without fearing failure. The best example is of Knight’s first meeting with the Japanese company. In the meeting with the Onitsuka staff, when they asked Knight about his company name, he said “Blue Ribbon”. Well in reality there was no such company. The thought of Blue ribbon came from the wall of his house, decorated with blue ribbons which he had got from the track. So just do it and face the situation!
5) Make a Team: As per Phil, it takes a group of people to achieve a big dream. In this book you will find at every step the team members contributed immensely towards the success of Nike. Nike was Phil’s idea but his team members considered it as their dream. They stayed unruffled even during difficult situations. Some of his employees had to change places for the sake of Nike but they readily moved. One of his employee’s (Woodell) parents even gave their life savings for the company. There is a beautiful line said by woodell’s mother, “If you can’t trust the company your son is working for, then who can you trust.” Apart from his friends and employees his family was a great backing for Phil. His father initially didn’t believe his idea of selling shoes but he supported him. He believed in traditional values and respectability still he gave him money to fulfill his dream. Later in this book you will find every night Phil called up his father and discussed about his business. His mother ordered a pair of “Limber ups shoes” for 7 dollars from him just to show her support. His sister was his first employee who handled his accounts. His wife Penny was his student initially, then became his employee and then wife. She worked in his company throughout her pregnancy and supported him in every possible way. She handled the expenses of the house very well even in critical situations. In the last para you will find Phil has mentioned that he could not have done it without her support. He also mentions about his regrets in the last part, Night.
Why you should read this book
The book puts emphasis on the quality of resilience which is utmost for successful entrepreneurship. While reading the novel you will realize Phil knight is a very good story teller because you get involved with him in his journey. Many times you feel that his struggles are yours. When the bank rejected him twice and turned him to FBI, even though you know the present scenario of the company you feel the tension. He has narrated every single intricacy of running a business appropriately. He has described every member of his family as well as of company in depth which is quite interesting. His unique sense of humor has uplifted the story. Designing a dress code and its implementation was too funny. The whole process of deciding the name “Nike” for the new company is very intriguing. You will be amazed to know that the name Nike was not suggested by Phil but by his first employee, Jeff Johnson. One more interesting thing, Nike’s logo which is one of the most iconic logos, was designed by an art student for $35 only. The novel is fast paced. It also has lot of finance related content which can be boring at times. But since it is about running a business finance topics are expected. If you are a sports fan, entrepreneur or a runner then you should not miss this book. Anyone can go for this book because it is a bundle full of adventures, inspiration and life lessons.
Shoe Dog A Memoir by Phil Knight the Creator of NIKE FULL AUDIOBOOK