Reading Shoe Dog by Phil Knight, I was reminded over and over of how crazy entrepreneurs are. First off, they are trying to create something that only exists in their heads. Then, they engage others who see the vision and are committed to making it happen to help them. Then, they have to get samples of their ideas into prototype. All this takes money that they don’t have. They chase their dreams to the detriment of family, friends and their own personal health. Many of them don’t succeed. Nike almost failed for lack of cash several times, a lawsuit from his Japanese supplier (which they won) and a 20% duty increase pushed through congress by his competitors (which they forced down to a minor settlement). Talk about drama!

I loved reading all the ways Phil made a house of cards of paying his vendors and getting product to the customers. He could see the vision, and he was growing so fast he couldn’t get ahead of cash flow. If you’ve ever wondered why business people say “cash is king”, just read this book.

Today, Nike is a huge publicly traded company with 63,000 employees worldwide. It seems like “the man” now. Many people resent their domination of the market.

If you relate to how hard it is and how much sacrifice it takes to be successful in your business, share your stories with your team. Share all the failures that had to happen for the successes to be so sweet. Have the long time employees tell their stories to the younger folks. Hang pictures in the hallways of the first “office”. Maybe it is painful to remember how tough it was. Maybe it is just as tough or tougher today. Share that. It will fire up the team members who really engage.

 

image courtesy of www.Nikeblog.com