13A - Reading Reflection No.1

I read the autobiography Shoe Dog by Phil Knight, the founder of Nike inc

• What surprised you the most?

I was surprised that Phil Knight started from nothing and originally did not even think of Nike as the next huge company.  Back then people did not even enjoy the look of running shoes so it goes to show how much of an impact Knight had on the industry when he introduced his world famous Nike running shoes.

• What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?

I admire his passion and grit.  He is the pure definition of an entrepreneur and everyone can look at his story and take away things that he used to become successful and implement them in their own entrepreneurship journey.  

• What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?

The one thing that I admired the least would be that he manufactured the product overseas rather than domestically.  I can not fault him for this as the process is much cheaper for someone trying to start from scratch.

• Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?

Yes, he had multiple failures, like any great entrepreneur faces.  For example, he initially had trouble selling and marketing his shoes even though he had a lot in stock.  He learned from these hardships and turned them around.

2) What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited? 

He was an excellent leader and also problem solver.  It is very important that he could look at his own product and see the fault in it and have the ability to make the necessary adjustments.  He was a smart CEO and knew exactly what he needed and how it should be done which helped keep everyone on the same page.

3) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

One part of the reading that was confusing was when they were talking about his manufacturing process and how it worked.

4) If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why?

I would ask him what is his number one tip in becoming successful because he has made it himself and to receive knowledge from someone that like is invaluable. I would also ask him what his personal favorite product is and why he enjoys it so much.

5) For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?

His opinion was probably that hard work is essential to success and I definitely share the same opinion because if you don't work hard then someone else will.