1.) For this assignment I chose to read Shoe Dog by Phil Knight. What surprised me the most about Phil Knight is how he managed to get people to invest in his company even after he told investors he could fail. His honesty is definitely the thing I admired must about him. There seems to be a stigma about business being "shady" thanks to corrupt CEO's and reckless management teams that run major corporations. The one thing about Phil Knight that I didn't admire as much was the way he downplays his personality. He makes himself seem very shy and quiet and entrepreneurs have to be very vocal and open people when it comes to getting things done but that's just my opinion. Nike is arguably the most recognizable footwear brand in the entire world. Clearly Knight had met some obstacles but nothing of enough magnitude to sink his ship when it came to making Nike a household name.
2.) Knight exhibits a lot of honesty and that worked well in his favor. Being able to project the truth and using it in talks with investors allowed for him to create professional and personal relationships with people who wanted to help him build his company. Knight was also able to study patterns and create a business model that worked for him. He noticed how Japanese cameras became an instant hit in parts of Europe so he sought a way to do the same with Japanese footwear in the U.S
3.) I guess the thing that confused me the most was the structure of the book. Knight didn't make it seem as much of an autobiography since he broke off on tangents about the way entrepreneurs end up finding success. He talked about the disorganized path he took to success but he could've saved all that for another book in my opinion.
4.) The two questions I'd ask Phil Knight would be:
- Why choose footwear over anything else?
- If you could do anything differently, would you?
I'd ask these questions because there are so many other products and services people put time and effort into instead of shoes. I also think every business-person has something they regret doing or, in most cases, not doing and if they could reverse time they'd fix that mistake if they could.
5.) Knight holds a recurring theme of "baby steps" throughout the whole book and I agree with his philosophy. A lot of people start business with ideas of what they could be but don't think about the foundation of the company. Starting off with small goals and going from there is a proven method of building something efficiently and Knight used this strategy to build Nike into what it is today.
2.) Knight exhibits a lot of honesty and that worked well in his favor. Being able to project the truth and using it in talks with investors allowed for him to create professional and personal relationships with people who wanted to help him build his company. Knight was also able to study patterns and create a business model that worked for him. He noticed how Japanese cameras became an instant hit in parts of Europe so he sought a way to do the same with Japanese footwear in the U.S
3.) I guess the thing that confused me the most was the structure of the book. Knight didn't make it seem as much of an autobiography since he broke off on tangents about the way entrepreneurs end up finding success. He talked about the disorganized path he took to success but he could've saved all that for another book in my opinion.
4.) The two questions I'd ask Phil Knight would be:
- Why choose footwear over anything else?
- If you could do anything differently, would you?
I'd ask these questions because there are so many other products and services people put time and effort into instead of shoes. I also think every business-person has something they regret doing or, in most cases, not doing and if they could reverse time they'd fix that mistake if they could.
5.) Knight holds a recurring theme of "baby steps" throughout the whole book and I agree with his philosophy. A lot of people start business with ideas of what they could be but don't think about the foundation of the company. Starting off with small goals and going from there is a proven method of building something efficiently and Knight used this strategy to build Nike into what it is today.
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