Anyone who has followed me on Twitter knows that I am a pretty regular runner. I try to run at least four times a week, and depending on the time of year, my schedule, and other variables, I have run as much as six times a week.

It was not always this way. I have asthma, which didn’t help much as a kid, but that problem has been controlled by medication for years. And although I was a soccer player, I was not much of a runner. Goalkeepers often aren’t.  In my older years, I was known to say from time to time, “I only run when being chased.”

Sometime in 2011, that changed. I started running three miles, most days.  I got a pair of the Nike Free Run Shoes, which may or may not have helped, but I was less sore then I was with the old, stable, and heavy, running shoes I would previously tried to run.  Not long after that I got the Nike+ running app, which tracked my runs and served as a motivator and something of a personal accountability measure, as I shared my run with friends.   

In a little more than three years, I ran 769 times and logged 2569 miles on the Nike+ running app.  Not bad. 

For me, it was figuring out that I didn’t have to commit to a marathon, or even a 10K.  I went for three-mile runs each time, and about a year ago I upped that run to about 3.5 miles each time out, and I never worry about a longer run.  I found what I could stick to, and the Nike+ app helped me see just how much I was accomplishing in relatively short, but regular, outings.  I recommend giving it a try, if you’d like to run, but it always seemed to hard. 

So, this is a long introduction to my breakup with Nike+.  Nike created a thing at the end of 2014 called the “Out Do You Challenge.” It made a nice (kind of goofy) little video that chronicled the year for some of my friends who have accomplished some impressive feats.  Things like marathons. That’s great, and a nice, if a bit cheesy reward for a year of effort. 

The site offers a place to click to see if you “made the cut for the challenge.”  I did not.  Okay, so it’s not that I deserve anything or that Nike kept something from me that I had a right to. Their site and app; their rules.  But it still seemed a little odd, given that I am a connected and regular user, who shared all his runs on social media, and had run as much as 200 miles more than others deemed “worthy.” 

Being the connected user that I am, I inquired.  The response from Nike was as follows: “We are sorry to hear that you weren’t selected for the Nike+ Outdo You Challenge. We selected our top Nike+ users who met the highest level of engagement and had complete profile information.” 

Again, they get to make the rules, but it’s hard to see how I wouldn’t make the grade based on how often I used the app. For some reason, this irked (and still irks) me, and I couldn’t figure out why.  Then it dawned on me: in my own stupid way, I felt betrayed. I was thinking: We had been in this together for 2,500 miles.  I had stuck with it when the app was not working and the only way to fix it was to email support for help.  I had run with Nike+ in Warsaw and Krakow and London and Spain and all over the United States.  We did it together. And now I was left out.

So, it occurred to me that I was being silly.  It is pretty silly, but it’s still how I felt.  And it’s also a lesson in how to keep people connected and engaged.  

If there had been a target or a message – “you need to run at least a half marathon” or “we need your home address” – that made clear what was required, then I can choose if I am in.  Instead, Nike decided to create a post hoc award for certain participants.  Again, their choice, but in doing so they excluded someone who thought they were part of the team.  And that undermines loyalty.

I’m not saying I won’t run in Nike shoes any more or that I’ll never use the Nike+ app.  I might.  But I am also auditioning others.  Currently, I am running with MapMyRun to see how I like that.  In addition to Nike, I will be trying some other options – maybe Brooks, Rebook, or Adidas – in my next trip to the running shop.

This is a good lesson in marketing, I think, but also in teaching.  The best teachers cultivate trust.  They have high expectations, and if they aren’t met, the students usually know.  I try to be transparent with my students about what I expect, and why, so that they know whether they are on track or not.  I am sure, though, that during my career, I have surprised some students who felt betrayed because they thought they were on track, yet their grade did not coincide with what they thought they put in. 

I know I am a lot better today about sharing and explaining those expectations today than I was when I started as a teacher, but it’s good to be reminded of just how critical it can be as transparent as possible with your expectations. So, thanks, Nike+, for the reminder.  Maybe I’ll be back.  Maybe not.