The book that made me want to read more about businesses, project management, and self-development. Phil Knight's Shoe Dog taught me a lot and it's probably in my top 5 favorite reads.
Highlights:
There's a kind of exuberant clarity in that pulsing half second before winning and losing are decided. Phil wanted that, whatever that was, to be his life, his daily life.
You tell yourself you're running toward some goal, chasing some rush, but really you run because the alternative, stopping, scares you to death.
Before running a big race, you always want to walk the track.
Lightness directly translates to less burden, which meant more energy, which meant more speed and speed equaled winning. Bowerman didn't like to lose.
Phil realized that he believed in running. He believed that if people got out and ran a few miles every day, the world would be a better place.
The art of competing, Phil learned from track, was the art of forgetting. He knew that he had to forget his limits and doubts, pain, and past. When it came to running, you have to take that next step. Don't let the voice screaming in your head win. More highlights in the comment section!
Running track gives you fierce respect for numbers, because you are what your numbers say you are, nothing more, nothing less. The numbers, in the end, were all that anyone would remember.
If you have a body, you're an athlete.
Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.
In business, fail fast.
"I wanted want everyone wants. To be me, full-time," said Phil Knight.
The basic rule of negotiation is to know what you want and what you need to walk with in order to be whole.
Life is growth. You grow or you die.
Phil always told himself to keep going, to not stop.
Shoe dogs were people who devoted themselves wholly to the making, selling, buying, or designing of shoes.
The swoosh logo is the sound of someone going past you.
Like books, sports give people a sense of having lived other lives, of taking part in other people's victories. And defeats.
When Phil and his team did fail, they had faith that they'd do it fast and learn from it and be better for it.
Always play it straight - like it is.
Think about what kind of company you want to be.
The best way to reinforce your knowledge of a subject is to share it.
There is no finish line.
You measure yourself by the people who measure themselves by you.
Giving up doesn't mean stopping. Don't ever stop.
Have faith in yourself but also have faith in faith. Not faith as others define it. Faith as you define it.
The single easiest way to find out how you feel about someone, say goodbye.
*And, as always, I take no credit.
Comments