I am late, I know.  Published in 2007, “Display of Power” is the first memoir of entrepreneur Daymond John who rose to success with his fashion line FUBU- For Us, By Us.

I read the ebook this week, it was my first time reading an entire book electronically which was interesting.  I had to ignore the incoming notifications on my mobile device to stay focused.  Then because I am a pick up a book and don’t put it down until it’s done type of reader, the battery ran dead and I had to read the last quarter of the book while the device was plugged into the charger.

In the book, he details the struggles and the obstacles he and his team had to hurdle to get their business off the ground.  Now I have heard the stories that float around about how the FUBU line began but there is nothing like getting the story straight from the source.

I am a big fan of biographies because it gives insight into the lives of the people you admire.  You can learn so much about a person’s journey reading their work.  And like the stories I have read before, Quincy Jones, Lee Iocca, Pam Grier, Donald Trump, Gordan Parks and many more, “Display of Power” opened my eyes to the author’s past and helped me understand his rise to fame.

Daymond John shares some of his personal life to set the stage for his professional development.  The book is mostly about the trials, tribulations and triumphs it took for four black men to break into the fashion industry, hence the subtitle, “How FUBU Changed A World of Fashion, Branding and Lifestyle.”  Their trailblazing story is worth the read, especially if you are interested in going into fashion or becoming an entrepreneur.

Mr. John has grown into a branding guru and his second work, “The Brand Within” is now on my reading list.   He is releasing his third book next year, 2016, entitled “The Power of Broke.”  If he shares as much in these books as in the first, readers will be informed and educated by his candid reflections.

“Display of Power” is currently available for FREE via download at daymondjohn.com where you can also link to John’s additional pursuits including his work on the hit television series Shark Tank.