Little-known thoroughbred “I'll Have Another”–sold for a mere $11,000 and entering the race as a 15-to-1 longshot–busted out of a large pack of competitors and blew to victory in the 2012 Kentucky Derby. Two weeks later, the horse blazed to a win at the 137th Preakness, taking the second title in horseracing's coveted Triple Crown. The day before the Belmont Stakes, the 3-year-old colt was scratched from the race, due to swelling in his left front leg.

While the prospects of a Triple Crown generate a lot of excitement—and a lot of money (tickets for Belmont, normally $20 or less, were reportedly selling for up to $800 up until the news hit), these competitors have nothing on independent agency principals. While the last Triple Crown winner was in 1978, in our business we must shoot for the Triple Crown every year. For me, that requires wearing a number of hats—and not necessarily the fancy ones that show up every year at Churchill Downs.

First, I wear my principal's hat. With that one on, I manage my agency's operations, including new business and retention activity. These are key factors in enhancing agency value and profitability. A key part of my “management” work revolves around our agency's new Epic agency management system.