HOW IT WORKS
The strongest decisions do not always begin with a better answer. Sometimes they begin with a better question.
Use this digital deck during staff meetings, planning sessions, coaching conversations, or the difficult moments when an owner's perspective needs to shift. Choose the category that fits the moment, open one question, and discuss it before rushing to solve it.
01. CHOOSE
Choose the category that best matches the issue in front of you.
02. OPEN
Open one question and give everyone a moment to think before responding.
03. DISCUSS
Discuss what the question reveals, then decide what action belongs next.
PURPOSE
Keep daily decisions connected to the reason the swim school exists.
PROCESS
Turn recurring problems into clear, teachable, and sustainable systems.
PROFITABILITY
Protect quality by understanding what the business must earn, measure, and reinvest.
WILD CARDS
Ways to Use the Deck
01.
Pull one question at the beginning of a staff meeting.
02.
Use one category to frame a quarterly planning session.
03.
Choose a People question before a coaching or performance conversation.
04.
Use a Process question when the same problem appears for the third time.
05.
Review a Profitability question before changing prices, schedules, or programs.
06.
Pull a WILD Card when the familiar answer is no longer working.
MEET ANGELA
Angela Wild, MA, MPH
Candidate, USSSA Board of Directors
About Me
I have spent more than 25 years in aquatic education, and today I own Elemental Aquatics, a boutique swim school in North County San Diego where I teach private and adaptive lessons. My background in kinesiology, motor learning, and public health shapes both how I teach and how I think about the business of swim instruction. I serve on the board of the National Drowning Prevention Alliance and contribute to the U.S. National Water Safety Action Plan working group on water safety, water competency, and swimming lessons. I also founded The Water Safety Syndicate to help swim professionals put drowning prevention research into everyday practice.
Why I'm Running
Swim school owners carry a remarkable amount of responsibility, often with very little time to step back and think about the business they are building. I am running for the USSSA Board because I want every member school, from single-instructor programs like mine to large multi-site operations, to have the support, resources, and voice that make this work sustainable. The Owner's WILD Card is a small example of how I hope to serve, through practical tools that respect how busy owners are and help them lead with clarity.
My Priorities for USSSA
Stronger support for owners, with practical resources for leadership, staffing, and the daily decisions that shape a school.
Sustainable business practices that protect lesson quality, pay staff fairly, and leave room to reinvest.
Evidence-informed education that brings current drowning prevention and learn-to-swim research into everyday teaching.
Advocacy for every kind of swim school, from boutique and adaptive programs to large facilities.
USSSA member voting opens October 15. Watch your email for your ballot from USSSA. I would be honored to have your vote.
THE OWNER'S WILD CARD
Created by Angela Wild — Elemental Aquatics
This resource is intended to support reflection and discussion. Use appropriate legal, financial, human-resources, and safety professionals when a decision requires specialized guidance.