I have a pair of Pearl Izumi X-Alp Seeks that I've pretty much work every day for the last year, they're almost like my cross-training shoes. They don't have a high degree of added stiffness that tends to come with cycling shoes, but there is a small patch on the ball of the feet where they have very poor grip. I once slipped out at the bottom of a staircase in front of my co-workers. Otherwise, fantastic.