13A - Reading Reflection No. 1

13A - Reading Reflection No. 1

1. The book I read was Shoe Dog by Phil Knight.  Phil is one of the cofounders of Nike.  When Phil started Nike, he was just a young man with a passion for running and a need for better shoes.  He didn't have tons of money or business strategies, he was just passionate about his product.  Phil encountered adversity and failure many times throughout the start of Nike, but he pushed forward.  One of the lessons he talks about in Shoe Dog is getting over failure quickly, so you can move on to the next great thing.

2.  Some of Phil's best competencies were his ability to observe the world around him and the ability to learn from failure.  The idea for Nike came from Phil being observant enough to notice the craze that consumers had for foreign goods, specifically products from Japan.  He was able to use this product craze to create the hype around his Nike Shoes idea.

3.  One part of the reading that confused me was when Phil talked about how it is normal for our parents to encourage us to conform and take the safe option.  Ever since I was a child, my parents have pushed me to go out of my comfort zone, and do the thing that will make me the happiest in the long run, even if it isn't always the safest.  Even today when I am facing big decisions like career and life moves, my parents encourage me to go out of my comfort zone and try something new, even if that is something that scares me at first.

4.  Was there ever a time that you doubted that Nike was really worth it, and you wished you had taken a more traditional path?  Looking back now, what would be one thing that you would change about your path that brought you here?

5.  I believe Phil encourages hard work from himself and his employees, but also wants the workplace to be fun and exciting.  He is creating an environment that fosters creativity and imagination.  He wants to support new ideas and inventions.