Lesson One.  There is no plan.

At the 2000 convention, Obama couldn't even get onto the floor. Eight years later, he's the nominee. 

Lesson Two. Think strengths, not weaknesses.

Obama has always exemplified John McPhee's "sense of where you are." He focused on what he did well. And he brought in others -- think Joe Biden -- to compensate for his weaknesses.  

Lesson Three. It's not about you.

In his speech last night, Obama said: "This election has never been about me. It's been about you." Diana would be proud.

Lesson Four. Persistence trumps talent.

Obama is an insanely talented guy. But that's not why he won. The dirty little secret is that he outworked (and, as a consequence, outsmarted) Senator Clinton.

Lesson Five. Make excellent mistakes.

Obama quickly gave up bowling and other lame attempts to pretend he's a pudgy white guy from Ohio. (Full disclosure: I'm a pudgy white guy from Ohio.) But that helped him realize he had a problem with working class voters -- which he quickly addressed with policy prescriptions rather than photo ops. 

Lesson Six. Leave an imprint.

Despite all the b.s. that pervades politics, leaving an imprint is ultimately what Obama -- and John McCain -- are trying to do.