The Hidden Cost of Ambition

A note to young leaders.

Ambition is a beautiful thing – but it’s treacherous too.

Phil Knight built Nike from a $50 loan and a pair of Japanese running shoes into a $160 billion empire. He turned a running shoe into a global branding phenomenon.

But in 2004, Knight’s eldest son Matthew – working with a children’s charity in El Salvador – suffered a heart attack while scuba diving. He died instantly.

Knight was 66.

Knight and Matthew had always had a difficult relationship. Matthew grew up watching his father pour everything into Nike. He rebelled. Knight could never quite reach him.

In his memoir, Shoe Dog, Knight wrote: “Above all, I regret not spending more time with my sons. Maybe, if I had, I could’ve solved the encrypted code of Matthew Knight.”

Ambition doesn’t send you the bill while you’re building. It sends the bill years later, when it’s too late to re-negotiate the terms.

Build your dream. Build it with all your heart. Just make sure you have more than one love.