This is one of my favourite books of 2020. It’s the story of Phil Knight, the founder of Nike. I’m not necessarily a huge fan of Nike, but I thoroughly enjoyed the telling of the story. It’s a true story of how Phil grew the company from the ground up, the trials and tribulations that went with it, how they were growing so fast and therefore needed to invest the money they made back into the company that they were often on the brink of bankruptcy. For anyone who has a dream to build a big company from scratch, this is a truly inspiring story.
Key points of note:
- Money isn’t our end game… but we need money to get there
- Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with the results
- “Acting as if…” (e.g. buying a bigger house in the middle of a revenue argument with the government)
- Start small, and go step by step
- Build a team around you
- Cherish how far you’ve come, not how far you have to go
- Comparison of making money in business to making blood in the body – we need blood, but having purpose and meaning is what makes a good life. Contribution, helping people live more fully, is what business is all about!
- “It’s never just business. It never will be. If it ever does become just business, that will mean that business is very bad.”
- Connection = oneness