Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE

Genre: Non-Fiction

This is the true story of Phil Knight, founder and CEO of Nike. In his very concise and unwavering writing, Knight describes the beginnings of what we know today as the Nike Shoe company. He gets the seed money for the company from his father in 1962, the same year he took a trip around the world, and begins selling imported shoes from Japan from the trunk of his car. The beginnings of Nike are humble and slowly, but surely, Knight, driven by success, grows this company into a multi-billion dollar empire. In this story we learn of Knight's family, his wife and children and the roles everyone's lives (and heartbreaking losses) propel Knight to work hard. This is a story of what can happen with a lot of hard work, consistency and the belief in what you are working towards.

I was debating whether to write a review for this book because (and this doesn't happen often), every once in a while I read a book about which I feel ambivalence, and writing a review of a book that you neither love nor hate, is seemingly impossible. It's not that I didn't find Knight's journey from Stanford graduate living at home with his parents and sisters, to selling shoes out of the trunk of his car, to traveling the world and creating a new fledgling company, to connecting with professional athletes, to creating his brand, to going public with that brand and becoming a very wealthy man, interesting. I did. But, it seems to me that Knight was motivated by success and not by passion. And while he was clearly passionate about running and interacting with some of the world's greatest athletes, I would not describe this man as passionate about his shoes or company. I would describe him as calculating and hyper focused on success. Those aren't qualities that I particularly relate to, although I know that they are important, in moderation. But, personally, the things in my life that I've been passionate about, have also been the things I've succeeded with the most. None of my ventures have ever come close to Knight's success and maybe that's my missing piece. I don't strive for success, but rather, I strive to love what I do, work hard, and enjoy the process. I suppose that ultimately, this book has given me lots to think about. I suppose, then, that that ultimately, that's what reading is about. So, the review is in. Put this on your list, but get to it when you're looking for something that may teach you, but won't move you.