Mark Parker Quotes

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Mark Parker

Profession : Businessman

Birth : October 21, 1955

At Penn State, I ran distance and cross country as a walk-on. I wound up running a lot of marathons, 30-plus. I was okay. I won one in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. I think it was around 2:30. I could crank those out all day.

Mark Parker

Eventually, I developed compartment syndrome in my calf and had to get surgery. I run three to five days a week now, mixed in with walking and other things. I want to run just because I enjoy it.

Mark Parker

I'm inspired by visual stimulation.

Mark Parker

I don't like when I say 'honestly' - not to imply that I'm otherwise not honest.

Mark Parker

When I travel, I connect with creative people in all different fields and disciplines. It's sort of just to keep my finger on the pulse of what's going on. I think that's important.

Mark Parker

I tend to gravitate toward people who are a bit more eccentric and creative and artistic in some ways. And I like bringing disparate kinds of creative people together to create some great work, even to share points of view on a new direction.

Mark Parker

I'm a relentless sketcher. It goes back to how you process the world around you - the whole left-brain, right-brain thing. Some people are data-driven. I've always been more visual.

Mark Parker

I think overdesigning comes from a lack of editing. The strongest, most compelling, and most useful things in life are irreducible - love, truth, faith, honor.

Mark Parker

I love working with athletes. They're all very demanding.

Mark Parker

The psychology of performance in athletic footwear and apparel is very real. Most athletes do not say, 'Just give me what works the best - I don't care what it looks like.' They're very concerned with what it looks like and how it makes them feel.

Mark Parker

There is always an underlying spirit of invention at Nike - we love to create something that has never before existed. And not just new for the sake of new - it has to be better.

Mark Parker

Nike is at its best when we focus on the future. Sport is in a constant state of progression. Athletes are expanding their potential every day - and so must we.

Mark Parker

I don't think you need a certificate to truly legitimize you or authenticate you as a designer. I think real innovation and creativity can come from everywhere.

Mark Parker

I think a really great creative person is almost by nature incredibly curious and digging deeply into cultures and technologies and getting all this input and using it to make things better - basically, creating better solutions.

Mark Parker

I was a pretty independent kid. I thought maybe I'd be a veterinarian or an environmental lawyer.

Mark Parker

I'm drawn to talented, creative people who often just don't know how to support themselves - they're more focused on their work than trying to figure that out. So I commission a lot of works with artists who I like personally or professionally, and through that process, I wound up collecting a lot of art.

Mark Parker

I've gotten lots of great advice from lots of people that I admire, but the person who influenced me more than anyone in my life was my grandmother.

Mark Parker

Nike believes in a world where everyone celebrates the power of diversity.

Mark Parker

Regardless of whether or how you worship, where you come from or who you love, everyone's individual experience is what makes us stronger as a whole.

Mark Parker

As a company, I'm proud that Nike takes a stand on issues that impact all of us, our athletes, and society as a whole. And I am proud that Nike stands against discrimination in any form. We stand against bigotry. We stand for racial justice. We firmly believe the world can improve.

Mark Parker