a stab of regret,一陣悔恨

The cowards never started.

Jeez 天啊

Sadly, fate had made me good, not great. At twenty-four I was finally resigned to that fact.

the daily grind 日常工作

The act itself becomes the destination. It’s not just that there’s no finish line; it’s that you define the finish line. Whatever pleasures or gains you derive from the act of running, you must find them within. It’s all in how you frame it, how you sell it to yourself.

out of the blue, 出其不意，出乎意

work up the nerve 鼓起勇氣

run-of-the-mill 非選拔的

made deep cuts into the camera market,

what the Chinese call Tao,

hard sell, 難賣

unnerve vt. 使失去勇氣; 使身心交疲; 使焦躁; 使失常

Fat chance 好機會

Swell idea 好主意

Beat it 走開

close a few sales. 成交

stick around 逗留，停留

bald-faced 臉白的;赤裸裸的

cough into my fist.（清理嗓子的動作）

largely untapped.大量未開發的

Analects 論語

walled-off mystical land, 世外桃源

upturned 向上翹的，上下翻轉過來的

On my right was the Temple of Athena Nike.

worldly. 世俗的

double-handed handshakes 雙手緊握

“Everyone, but everyone, changes jobs at least three times. So if you go to work for an investment firm now, you’ll eventually leave, and then at your next job you’ll have to start all over. If you go work for some big company, son, same deal. No, what you want to do, while you’re young, is get your CPA. That, along with your MBA, will put a solid floor under your earnings. Then, when you change jobs, which you will, trust me, at least you’ll maintain your salary level. You won’t go backward.” 關于扎實的學歷對于工作的重要性

And it did start out that way. My first assignment was a Beaverton company, Reser’s Fine Foods, and as the solo man on the job I got to spend quality time with the CEO, Al Reser, who was just three years older than me. I picked up some important lessons from him, and enjoyed my time poring over his books.跟對領導

take up the slack. 拉緊松弛部分

Frugality 節約，樸素，節儉

Love and fear—the same binary emotions

And yet the two men were driven by different demons. My father, the son of a butcher, was always chasing respectability, whereas Bowerman, whose father had been governor of Oregon, didn’t give a darn for respectability. 兒時生活對之后人生的影響

Blend 混合

stopwatch.

so forth, 等等

I was close to tears. But I held it together, channeled all my emotion into my run.轉移注意力，抑制感情的爆發

We spent a few minutes catching up. 敘舊

Backbreaking （體力勞動） 艱苦繁重的，累死人的

fall short of 缺乏; 不足; 達不到（目標）; 不符合

skin you alive. 活剝你的皮

flesh-and-blood, 血肉般的

the classic case of opposites attracting. 異性相吸

thick rimless glasses to correct his 20-450 vision,

refused to cut back on his salt, despite a doctor’s warnings that his blood pressure was up.

dig at 鉆研; 挖苦，對… 做旁敲側擊

hands jammed into his pockets,

Most people who came to the house had found me through word of mouth. Friend of a friend. But a few found me through my first attempt at advertising—a handout I’d designed and produced at a local print shop. Along the top, in big type, it said: Best news in flats! Japan challenges European track shoe domination! The handout then went on to explain: Low Japanese labor costs make it possible for an exciting new firm to offer these shoes at the low low price of $6.95. Along the bottom was my address and phone number. I nailed them up all over Portland. 初期宣傳

The Bank of Dad, he said, is now closed. 啃老族的形容

product that was selling itself. 產品自己會為自己說話

anthro ['?nθro?]人類學

happiness can be dangerous. It dulls the senses.

showdown攤牌; 一決勝負; 緊要關頭

The art of competing, I’d learned from track, was the art of forgetting, and I now reminded myself of that fact. You must forget your limits. You must forget your doubts, your pain, your past. You must forget that internal voice screaming, begging, “Not one more step!”

out of practice.

he filled every man in the conference room with fear.

gave his hand an extra-vigorous shake.格外有力

beatnik. 反傳統一代成員，（俗稱）披頭族的人垮掉的一代

you’re a rebel. 反叛,不走尋常路

put out. 心煩 feel put out

Then the sun crept above the horizon. 太陽爬出了地平線

She was a free spirit, she didn’t believe in plans.

show what friends are for.朋友存在的意義

As ever, the accountant in me saw the risk, the entrepreneur saw the possibility. So I split the difference and kept moving forward. 工作職能不同，看問題的角度也不一樣

second-guess 事后勸告，預言

cloudy future,灰暗的未來

While auditing these companies, digging into their guts, taking them apart and putting them back together, I was also learning how they survived, or didn’t.

grow red in the face,羞紅了臉

onionskin薄的半透明紙，洋蔥皮

makeshift 權宜之計; 臨時替代品;

PS, 附言,補充說明

Was I adopting their man-of-few-words demeanor? 行為，舉止，態度

business has its warlike parallels.

cardinal virtue, 基本美德; 基本德性

home-schooling家庭教育

Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.

cushion.墊子，緩沖

Steep price, 價格過高

king-sized特大號

intangible觸不到的; 難以理解的; 無法確定的

But my hope was that when I failed, if I failed, I’d fail quickly, so I’d have enough time, enough years, to implement all the hard-won lessons. I wasn’t much for setting goals, but this goal kept flashing through my mind every day, until it became my internal chant: Fail fast. 快速迭代,快速試錯,精益創業

In closing寫信結束語

Soon Bowerman phoned again. He wanted me to hire another person. Quadrupling my staff in the span of a few months? Did my old coach think I was General Motors? I might have balked, but then Bowerman said the job candidate’s name. 創業初期招人很嚴謹,聯系linkedin來考慮

blood rivals 對手

gooseneck鵝頸

By the tail end of 1967

handyman, 受雇做雜事的人，做零活的人; 能工巧匠;

low-key低調的，軟調的; 低強度的; 抑制的; 有節制的;

I asked if she was seeing anyone.約會，談戀愛

Alcohol and time worked their magic.

ditch 擺脫，拋棄; 在… 上掘溝

seal of approval批準,同意

drum her fingers on the table.手指敲擊桌子打出節奏

formalize our relationship,

The single easiest way to find out how you feel about someone. Say goodbye.

loner喜孤獨者，不合群者;

force a big smile強顏歡笑

The skies threatened rain, but never opened. 要下雨,還沒下

jack up our prices.提高價錢

I wasn’t proud of this behavior, but it was ingrained. It explained me. 根深蒂固的; 徹頭徹尾的

And in which part of town should we buy? Where were the best schools? And how was I supposed to research real estate prices and schools, plus all the other things that go into buying a house, while running a start-up company? Was it even feasible to run a start-up company while starting a family? Should I go back to accounting, or teaching, or something more stable? 家庭與事業的矛盾

tick off every item on his to-do list, 用記號勾出; 列舉; 簡略地描述

selfsame完全一樣的，相同的

we brought out a chatty streak in each other. Streak 條紋; （通常指不好的）特征（傾向） chatty愛閑聊的

I remember only that we always sat up half the night, cataloging the past, mapping out the future. 總結過去,籌劃未來

call to mind the image of Woodell,

Inviting,吸引人的

telling Bork that everyone bitched about it, everyone pulled their hair out about my nonresponses to their memos and letters. 抱怨

Yes, 1973 seemed light-years away, but it would be here in a blink.形容時間過得快

choke someone, 嗆人

I just sat up straighter and hugged myself. This was my new nervous tic, my new habit. Rubber bands were no longer cutting it. Whenever I felt stressed, whenever I wanted to choke someone, I’d wrap my arms good and tight around my torso. That day the habit was more pronounced. 典型的緊張表現

I was left to fill the silence with worst-case scenarios.

first and foremost首要的; 第一

More than once, over my first cup of coffee in the morning, or while trying to fall asleep at night, I’d tell myself: Maybe I’m a fool? Maybe this whole damn shoe thing is a fool’s errand? 對自己的事業產生過很大的懷疑

folks. 雙親

weight ballooned. 體重暴漲

ringing響亮的; 銀鈴般的; 干脆的; 斬釘截鐵的;

turn the floor over to 把講臺交給..(讓某人發言)

storm out, 非常氣憤地出去 [離開];

who was wearing an expression that said, Job well done.

subcontract 轉包，分包

unwind 放松，展開

wingman,撩機

I perceived something bubbling inside Jaqua, and rising to his throat,（體會用法）

gave him a big hand. 1、熱烈鼓掌 2、幫了大忙

Give-Blue-Ribbon-the-Brush-Off拒絕,斷然解雇

“Shoot,” I said. 趕快說

The thought crossed my mind that some of the hardest things ever said in our lifetimes are said softly.

see through看穿

In the suddenly Kitami-less conference room, Woodell and I stared into the grain of the conference table and let the stillness settle over us.

risk-averse. 不愿承擔風險

net margins,凈利潤

growth companies with big upsides.

a land mine; to Nissho we were a potential gold mine. 一個是地雷,一個是金礦

I was deeply tired when I returned home each night. But I’d always get a second wind after my six-mile run, followed by a hot shower and a quick dinner, alone. 這里的wind 指力量

where I’d administer the nightly self-catechism. What do you know? I know Onitsuka can’t be trusted. What else do you know? I know my relationship with Kitami can’t be salvaged. What does the future hold? 這種自問自答的形式很好,反思自我

grow on在… 上面生長; 越來越被… 喜歡; 逐漸加強

god-awful. 令人憎惡的，糟透的;

catchy, 易記的; 易使人上當的; 迷人的;

unspeakably不能以語言表達地，無法形容地;

“He says he sat bolt upright in bed in the middle of the night and saw the name before him,” Woodell said. “What is it?” I asked, bracing myself. “Nike.” “Huh?” “Nike.” “Spell it.” “N-I-K-E,” Woodell said. I wrote it on a yellow legal pad. The Greek goddess of victory. The Acropolis. The Parthenon. The Temple. I thought back. Briefly. Fleetingly. Nike 名字的由來

brand-new嶄新的,全新的

complacent. 自滿
a hard-driving salesman. 精力充沛的; 進取心十足的，咄咄逼人的; 要求過高的，過于苛責的

Shoe dogs were people who devoted themselves wholly to the making, selling, buying, or designing of shoes. shoe dog 的含義

mania, 躁狂癥

knockoff名牌仿制品; 冒牌服裝;

conundrum. 難題

boil sth down to壓縮,簡化

compelling 引人入勝的; 扣人心弦的; 非常強烈的; 不可抗拒的

overcast陰天多云的

crack the U.S. market.

Spur-of-the-moment一時沖動的，立即的，不加思索的;

subtext潛臺詞

windfall. 意外之財

these two problems simmered and congealed in his thoughts.

Darn it, 糟糕

They were extroverts, we were introverts.外向與內向

kick off踢開; （足球） 中線開球;

Kitami had asked for the meeting, so he kicked it off.開場

reckless魯莽的，不顧危險的; 粗心大意的; 滿不在乎的; 膽大妄為;

counterproductive反生產的，使達不到預期目標的;

uplifting令人振奮的; 使人開心的;

grin露齒而笑

homeboy老鄉

endorse 支票的背書，簽名; 簽署，批準：簽署（簽名），; 開發票，開證明文件; 支持，核準;

headstrong任性的，剛愎自用的;

In their relationship I saw a mirror of my relationship with banks.

fault v. 批評指責

breakneck要使頸骨折斷似的，非常危險的;

do indoor workouts室內健身

the toast of New York（在某領域） 廣受贊譽的人

starstruck崇拜明星的；一心想當明星的;

tweak his duties稍微調整

pep n. 活力；銳氣，勁頭 vt. 激勵；使充滿活力，使精力充沛

widows and widowers, 鰥寡

He carried himself with remarkable assurance. 他帶著非凡的自信

jury.陪審團

take a dim view of悲觀的看法

contemplate注視，凝視; 盤算，計議; 周密考慮;

combat與… 戰斗; 與… 斗爭; 防止; 減輕;

sanity. 神志正常; 心智健康; 頭腦清楚; 通情達理;

preserve my sanity.保持清醒

toil 長時間或辛苦地工作; 艱難緩慢地移動; 跋涉;

liquid laugh, 爽朗的笑聲

rebellious streak. 叛逆的個性

looming trial. 即將到來的審判

a healthier outlet for his inner chaos.內心情緒的健康發泄

pitch-dark. 漆黑的;黑咕隆咚; 黑漆漆;

the pitch of his laughter. 笑聲的音高

Supply and demand is always the root problem in business.

eye-popping 使人瞠目（吃驚）的

holdouts釘子戶

Pending trial. 待審

Court is in session!庭審中

was running on adrenaline, but the adrenaline wasn’t giving me extra energy or clarity. 腎上腺素

I ran a hand over my face. 發愁的時候是不是會這樣?想一想使用場景

reduce me to tears. Reduce 在此為逼迫迫使的意思

I’d hit bottom. The only place to go was up.

Grapevine [?ɡrep?va?n] 小道消息; 葡萄藤; 謠傳，流言; 消息的秘密來源

bump into 撞見

unwind by taking a stroll around downtown, 放松，解開，松開 散步

Go white.臉嚇得變白

wing it. 即興演講 美口

OCD. 強迫癥（Obsessive-compulsive disorder，縮寫 OCD）

cupped my ear. 手掌緊貼在耳后以便聽得清楚些

a thunderous ovation.雷鳴般的掌聲

in-house 機構內部的，在機構內部進行的

deadbeat. 賴債不還的人，游手好閑者

fly-by-nigh t短暫的，一時的; 不可信任的

in the nick of time,恰好 we got here just in the nick of time

Their paychecks had bounced,彈回，拒付

smooth things over把事情掩飾/平息過去

his account, for some reason, was bone dry. 完全干了

It chilled me down to my marrow.寒徹骨

the wind atop Mount Fuji.

Sumeragi lit a Lucky Strike. One puff,Two.

I scrolled back years, questioning every decision I’d ever made that led to this point.復盤自我

my mind kept drifting

showdown. 攤牌; 一決勝負; 緊要關頭;

Adjourn 推遲，使終止

sober. 清醒的，未醉的

Answerable 有責任的，應負責的; 可答復的;

bow out. 退出，辭職

Cornerstone 基礎，地基

I remembered that the best way to reinforce your knowledge of a subject is to share it,教是為了更好的學習。

At the final dinner of our Taichung visit Gorman repeatedly excused himself and ran to the men’s room, to splash cold water on his face. Every time he left the table I got rid of my Mao tai by pouring it into his water glass. Each time he returned from the men’s room there was another toast, and Gorman thought he was playing it safe by raising his water glass. 在臺灣感受到中國酒文化的厲害

Nike. If we ever wanted to do business in the People’s Republic of China, we couldn’t be associated with China’s sworn enemy.不共戴天的仇人

Bicentennial 二百周年紀念

We analyzed the risks, weighed the cons, considered the pros.分析利弊

We rained down verbal blows.言語打擊

underperforming 表現不佳

The Buttfaces were like family, but every minute I spent with them was at the cost of my other family, my real family. 忙于工作犧牲了陪家人的時間

“Mr. Knight, we’ve come up with a way to inject . . . air . . . into a running shoe.” Nike air 鞋的由來

His secret, I think, was that he just didn’t care what he said or how he said it or how it went over. He was totally honest, a radical tactic in any negotiation. 實話實說是基本的談判策略（這一點越發有感覺）

hit the road, go out and see if you can crack that college basketball market.

Alas 唉

hothead 性急的人，魯莽的人

the competition among them so cutthroat, 殘酷的

Knockoff 名牌仿制品，冒牌服裝；中止，敲落

Imitation is flattery, but knockoff is theft。模仿是奉承，但是山寨就是盜賊。

Everyone around me thought the ad was bold, fresh. It didn’t focus on the product, but on the spirit behind the product, which was something you never saw in the 1970s.

In the second half of 1977 在1977下半年

I couldn’t duck it.躲避

nightcap 睡前一杯

in the pipeline 在考慮（或規劃、準備） 中; 在釀中; 在準備中; 在完成中;

He had me there. I did seem to hire nothing but accountants. And lawyers. It wasn’t that I had some bizarre affection for accountants and lawyers, I just didn’t know where else to look for talent.

Most had also demonstrated basic competence. When you hired an accountant, you knew he or she could count. When you hired a lawyer, you knew he or she could talk. When you hired a marketing expert, or product developer, what did you know? Nothing. You couldn’t predict what he or she could do, or if he or she could do anything. And the typical business school graduate? He or she didn’t want to start out with a bag selling shoes. Plus, they all had zero experience, so you were simply rolling the dice based on how well they did in an interview. We didn’t have enough margin for error to roll the dice on anyone.曾經的招聘的標準

I was no fashion plate. But I knew how to wear a decent suit. 時裝樣片，穿著時髦的人

“And—you’re fined again!” I yelled at Strasser. “Then you’re fucked!” he yelled back.罰款

beaming 喜氣洋洋的; 照耀的; 光亮的; 愉快的;

morale booster 鼓舞士氣的事物；振奮精神的事情;

tailwind. [?te?lw?nd]順風

I was transitioning him from legal to marketing, moving him out of his comfort zone, as I liked to do with everyone now and then, to prevent them from growing stale. 陳腐的; 不新鮮的; 走了味的;

with a long face. 愁眉苦臉

Maybe the cure for any burnout, I thought, is to just work harder.

He made air quotes with his bony “fingers. 用手表示雙引號

I wrapped my arms around myself. Ever since the onset of burnout, this old habit was becoming more pronounced. 攻擊，襲擊; 開始，動手; [醫] 發病

He has no truck with abuse of power. 與之無交往，不打交道

go toe-to-toe with Nixon 面對面,針鋒相對

bow tie 蝴蝶領結

shush 噓，別出聲

high-placed friends. 位高權重的朋友

The time had come to think of China. The question wasn’t how to get into China. One shoe company or another was going to get in, eventually, and then all the others would follow. The question was how to get in first. The first to get in would have a competitive advantage that could last decades, not only in China’s production sector, but in its markets, and with its political leaders. 進入中國市場考慮如何搶占先機以及處理和政府的關系

a show of hands.舉手表決 ask for……

cramming on Chinese history. The Boxer Rebellion. The Great Wall. Opium Wars. Ming dynasty. Confucius. Mao. 死記硬背中國歷史，義和團運動、鴉片戰爭

cram vt. 填滿; 塞滿; 死記硬背; 猛吃; vi. （為考試而） 死記硬背; 狼吞虎咽地吃東西;

pour myself into bed.倒在床上（體會那種狀態）

roasted duck烤鴨

seasoned. 成熟的，老練的

in full swing. 熱火朝天

afoot 徒步的（地）; 正在進行的（地）; 活動著的（地）; 不對勁的（地）

Venture outside our comfort zone, try something different.走出舒適區

I think of the countless Nike offices around the world. At each one, no matter the country, the phone number ends in 6453, which spells out Nike on the keypad. But, by pure chance, from right to left it also spells out Pre’s best time in the mile, to the tenth of a second: 3:54.6.耐克電話號碼尾號6453的來源

risk-addicted

Love wasn’t spoken, or shown, but it was there, always.

Legacy 遺產

“You measure yourself by the people who measure themselves by you.”你如何衡量別人，別人就會怎么衡量你。

sweatshop 血汗工廠

Peace feeds on prosperity. 以……為源

port 港口

When it came rolling in, the money affected us all. Not much, and not for long, because none of us was ever driven by money. 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. 關于金錢的看法，不要被金錢所支配。

men and women in their midtwenties 二十多歲

I’d tell men and women in their midtwenties not to settle for a job or a profession or even a career. Seek a calling. Even if you don’t know what that means, seek it. 對二十多歲年輕人的建議。

that they will always have a bull’s-eye on their backs. The better they get, the bigger the bull’s-eye. bull’s-eye靶心

Outgun 超過 勝過 The England team was completely outgunned

And those who urge entrepreneurs to never give up? Charlatans. Sometimes you have to give up. Sometimes knowing when to give up, when to try something else, is genius. Giving up doesn’t mean stopping. Don’t ever stop. 關于放棄

Hard work is critical, a good team is essential, brains and determination are invaluable, but luck may decide the outcome. Some people might not call it luck. They might call it Tao. 關于運氣

Put it this way.這么說吧

Zen 禪宗

razor-sharp 鋒利的，犀利的;