Book Review: Shoe Dog
I bought this book almost five years ago at an airport. I admit that I am a book hoarder. I buy more books than I can read. But this year I have made steady progress despite the challenging times when I am struggling to hold my life together.
‘Shoe Dog’ was not my first choice, but the title stuck with me. Shoe Dogs are those who breathe, live, and consume their lives figuring out everything about a shoe. This book is about the travails, tribulations, and triumphs of the founder of Nike — Phil Knight. The book itself was ghostwritten by J. R. Moehringer.
There are great quotes and lines in the book. I intend to read it again, for there are lines I could use for my personal motivation.
Plot of the Book:
The book starts with a 6-mile late evening run in one evening of 1962, after which Phil Knight comes back with the resolve to pursue his dream of venturing into selling Japanese Shoes in the US. He reluctantly approaches his father, who is a conservative journalist with a steady routine. Immersed in his evening TV routine, he says ‘Okay. Buck. Okay.’ From that half-minded yes from his father, who was always a skeptic till he saw the famous Nike Swoosh logo on a field incident in the 1976 Olympics, to his ever-confident mother, Buck moved forward with confidence.
On his first trip to Japan, he got initial consent from Onitsuka, the maker of Tiger shoes. From there on, Buck embarks on a struggling, perilous journey, often questioning his purpose and existence, and in the process figuring out ways and means to succeed and overcome the struggle
Key parts of the book cover detailed interactions between the founding team, its distributors, Buck’s family especially his wife Penelope, incidents of trust and betrayal, things coming through from the least unexpected when nothing was going right the belief and faith in those who were supporting ( the Nissho intervention, in particular of the stoic Ito and Sumeragi) coming true, and finally finding the right people who carried the torch to light the dark days of US Government action and finally, culminating in the listing.
The Two Cents for me:
Two parts stood out for me though because of the stage of life I am in.
The first one was about the fact that except for Buck no one was an athlete. People who had no prior experience, but with a connection with Buck or passion for what they do, made the cut.
The founding team of Nike faced numerous challenges, yet they were able to overcome them and succeed in the sports shoe market. Despite being chain smokers, obese, and paralyzed, they shared a common goal of making Nike a successful brand. However, their success was not solely due to their determination but also their camaraderie, loyalty, and gratitude towards each other.
It is worth noting that only one was the founder and visionary, yet the rest were average individuals who believed in an extraordinary goal. Their bond made of camaraderie, loyalty, and gratitude helped Nike survive even during a week of possible bankruptcy (when they had no bank account) and a US Government action.
The second one was the trust Buck placed in his second line, his starting team, and key members. It was a team effort, but the trust played a special role.
The moment I liked was the constant realization that Adidas was the dominant player and Puma was the challenger in the shoe market, leaving Nike with a challenge. Furthermore, Nike had just lost its main supply line, making the situation even more difficult.
The piece then goes on to describe how Nike overcame these challenges, with two key people — Woodell, the head of operations, and Johnson, the East Coast head — standing with the founders, Phil Knight and Bowerman, through the tough times with unwavering loyalty and a show of strength.
The author points out that these two individuals, along with the founder, were the bedrock of Nike’s success, alongside the company’s stars, investors, and others. The key to their success, particularly in times of adversity, was trusting their second line’s wisdom.
The piece opens with a powerful statement about when Nike realized they could no longer rely on others to sell their brand or work for someone else. They had to take control of their own destiny and overcome the obstacles they faced with resilience and trust in their team.
Quotes from the book:
My favorite quotes in the book are these:
“The cowards never started and the weak died along the way. That leaves us, ladies and gentlemen. Us.”
― Phil Knight, Shoe Dog
True. I am on a personal journey — I am neither weak nor coward. I am me. Except THAT. Follow my personal journey, and you will understand.
“When you make something, when you improve something, when you deliver something, when you add some new thing or service to the lives of strangers, making them happier, or healthier, or safer, or better, and when you do it all crisply and efficiently, smartly, the way everything should be done but so seldom is — you’re participating more fully in the whole grand human drama. More than simply alive, you’re helping others to live more fully, and if that’s business, all right, call me a businessman. Maybe it will grow on me. THERE”
― Phil Knight, Shoe Dog
I am out there — my calling is simple. Build something in venture capital that nobody has tried before, and show that it works. There are naysayers, there are also rans, and there are passengers, but when you put yourself out there, you feel that you look out for the ones who matter— the investors, the startups, and the other people who have backed me.
“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones”
― Phil Knight, Shoe Dog
Even in Ramayan, the little squirrels helped build the bridge to Lanka, by carrying pebbles in their mouths. Moving small pieces matter. I am good at that. I want my team to be good at that.
“Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.”
― Phil Knight, Shoe Dog
My biggest challenge is this — I am not built for this model. But this is the one I am willing to go the length. But to do this, you need a team that is loyal to the cause and aligned with the vision.
“But that’s the nature of money. Whether you have it or not, whether you want it or not, whether you like it or not, it will try to define your days. Our task as human beings is not to let it.”
― Phil Knight, Shoe Dog
Money is important. Money defines our good days and bad days more often than we think. Ask me. I wish… I had… more money. But then… I get to work.
“Driving back to Portland I’d puzzle over my sudden success at selling. I’d been unable to sell encyclopedias, and I’d despised it to boot. I’d been slightly better at selling mutual funds, but I’d felt dead inside. So why was selling shoes so different? Because I realized, it wasn’t selling. I believed in running. I believed that if people got out and ran a few miles every day, the world would be a better place, and I believed these shoes were better to run in. People, sensing my belief, wanted some of that belief for themselves. Belief, I decided. Belief is irresistible. Sometimes”
― Phil Knight, Shoe Dog
The belief that you have in your cause defines how effective you are in your pitch to investors or customers. I can’t agree more with this.
My two cents:
I stumbled upon some good books that have had an impact on my life, and this is one of them. After all, it is another story, but much more relatable to my personal journey at this phase of my life.
These books mean something when we convert them into affirmative action in our lives. In that sense, I have something to look forward to becoming a better human and in the process, a better entrepreneur.
~Ashok Subramanian © 2023
