Guide to Losing (and winning)

We envision this as an evolving series—potentially even a standalone project—because how you win and how you lose can be the defining attributes of who you are as a leader. Regardless of your role in any sport, every person contributes to how the organization collectively wins and loses.

We get to choose the path forward. Here are some incredible examples:

After Notre Dame’s heartbreaking three-point loss in the first week of the 2025 college football season, head coach Marcus Freeman walked into the locker room with a choice: let the sting of defeat consume his team, or use it to re-ignite their fire. He chose fire.

“I don’t care if you played every snap or none at all—everybody has a role. Grab yourself. What could you have done better?”

It wasn’t about blame. It was about responsibility. It was about keeping the boat pointed forward when it would be easiest to sink.

That’s leadership. Not replaying mistakes, not wallowing in pain—but re-centering the team in the very moment the loss is freshest. He turned heartbreak into horsepower.

The lesson:

Loss isn’t the end. It’s the ignition point. A leader’s job is to reset the compass and get everyone rowing together, no matter how rough the waters.

“Okay, we got to use this as we go back to work. We're going to go back to work, right? Stay together, man.”

On November 4, 2017, Washington State knocked off No. 18 Stanford in snowy Pullman, 24–21. The game was a grind, every yard earned, every snap contested. In the locker room afterward, Mike Leach didn’t let his players bask in an easy victory speech. He turned it into a lesson:

“Nothing is really fun unless it’s hard. We’ve got to embrace that things are going to be hard. Be excited when things are hard—because those are the games you’ll remember the rest of your life.”

That’s the difference. Winning isn’t the finish line—it’s the confirmation that the process works. The harder it is, the more meaningful the victory.

Leach reframed the moment: don’t hope it’s easy. Hope it’s hard. Because the struggle makes the reward unforgettable, and it forges the toughness you’ll need for what comes next.

This is how to win:

— Embrace the challenge

— Celebrate the grind

— Let the difficulty sharpen you, not soften you

Winning isn’t about escaping the fire—it’s about proving you can stand in it, together.