You may not know this about me, but in high school I started playing water polo - and for the next fifteen years it was a primary part of my identity.

I played in high school, then at Michigan State, and more casually for nearly another decade.

Somewhere along the way I started coaching co-ed middle school water polo, then women's high school, and eventually the MSU men's team.

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3. Create a System

During my last two seasons as the women's head coach at Okemos High School we won back-to-back state championships and had a record of 69 wins and 1 loss.

There is no question that I coached some very talented and capable athletes.

I was fortunate to have great support from my assistant coaches, and from the parents of the athletes, and from the athletic department at our school.

But more than any of those things I attribute our success to the system we built.

Yes, I'm referring to the system that we applied each season to collect, refine, and ultimately assemble those six parts of the game; but I'm also talking about the systems that supported that.

Remember, before coaching high school I spent four years leading the area's middle school program - so when I started coaching high school a number of the kids had played for me previously.

This meant I not only knew them, but they knew what I expected from them.

They knew when I was joking, or when I was serious, how we structured practice, and how we got ready for games.

But as importantly, I knew what they were coming into high school having already done - I knew the drills they had been running, and the fundamentals they had been taught.

We didn't start winning overnight, in fact we didn't even make the state tournament in my first season coaching high school.

But as kids graduated and new players joined the team - our system began to work, our focus crystallized, and we started to win.

The next year we finished 4th in the state.

And then in season three, we swept the table going a perfect 35-0 with five All-State players, two All-Americans, and the state MVP.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very proud of all that - but what happens next is why I'm telling this story.

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You can win individual games on the backs of talented athletes, but long term success comes when you take the time to create the environment that fosters success.

The truth is that I struggled a little writing this post - and I nearly decided not to publish it, because it felt a little too much like me just reliving some glory days.

I chose to share it because the lessons are real; and have only become clearer over time.

I guess what I'm saying is that these lessons happened long before I recognized their marketing relevance, and that periodically revisiting experiences (and accomplishments) of ours can not only be cathartic, but for me it's revealing angles I hadn't previously noticed.

If you found this valuable, or you've had hidden lessens emerge while you wax nostalgic on something - let me know in the comments below.