The Art of Winning

Lessons from My Life in Football

By: Bill Belichick

Narrated by: Bill Belichick

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Coach Belichick brought out the best in me. His book will do the same for you.” —Tom Brady • “This book shares the valuable lessons about excellence and leadership that Coach Belichick has learned.” —Michael Jordan • “Powerful, insightful, and remarkably personal, The Art of Winning is a playbook for life.” —Admiral William H. McRaven, US Navy (Retired) • “Invaluable for anyone trying to succeed in any aspect of life. I urge you to read this book.” —Ray Dalio • “A remarkable deep dive into the mind of a champion.” —Nick Saban

Winning isn’t a science. It’s an art. And it can be learned.

No one embodies winning more than Bill Belichick, the greatest football coach of all time. Over the past fifty years, Belichick has been a man of notoriously few words, believing that a coach should keep a low profile. After he left the Patriots in 2024, he briefly became a coach without a team. He spent that year writing down the principles he learned from his father, Navy football, and from his forty-nine-year coaching career.

Belichick’s philosophy goes far beyond football. He presents a whole-year, whole-life, whole-mindset approach to greatness that encompasses preparation, motivation, confidence, and leadership. The principles in this book are adaptable to wherever you work. No matter where you are on the ladder, they will help you think like a leader in anticipation of being one.

Drawing on decades of studying the greats of the game, handling colorful personalities and egos, and playing for the highest stakes in sports, Belichick shares memorable examples and practical takeaways from his lived experience. Winning is not about being perfect—it’s about growth. And you will improve only as much as you recognize where you’re weak. Belichick owns up to mistakes like deciding to go for it on 4th and 13 in the 2008 Super Bowl. Then he breaks down how to learn from your mistakes like a leader does—an approach that sustained him throughout his early career challenges and ultimately brought him to the top of the sport.

Belichick’s principles might surprise you at times. At other times, they might seem strangely obvious. (His rule for how to win football games? Score the most points.) Football is about strategy, human nature, and business. Your vision of success might involve breaking into a new, competitive market in your industry; seeing solid returns on a portfolio that you’ve carefully prepared; inspiring your students to earn the highest scores in the district; or raising up trainees to take over your job someday. Whatever the situation, your performance is up to you.

Practical, authoritative, and bursting with unforgettable inside stories, The Art of Winning is an indispensable guide to success from the greatest coach in NFL history.©2025 Bill Belichick (P)2025 Simon & Schuster Audio

Great book on experiences and how he was successful

This is an easy read and an interesting look at the Patriots through the eyes of Bill B. He also narrates, which is great because he is so passionate about the book. This book is full of great leadership lessons and how to apply them.

Finely a decent celebrity book

I really enjoyed this book. Instead of the usual babble, it was filled with very specific recommendations backed by real examples.

It’s a Code Breaker

It cracks the code to a lot of life’s problems. You just have to figure out how to apply it to your own situation.

Amazing book by an amazing coach!

A must read for anyone! Especially those looking to improve their life skills and Patriots fans.

I am better because of it!!

This is a book less about drama and more about discipline. It’s built on guiding principles—doing your job, taking ownership of mistakes, creating real culture—not slogans. Belichick delivers insight in concise, unvarnished prose, often illustrated with compelling stories that highlight what’s effective versus what’s merely catchy.
In other words:
No BS: Eschews clichés and sugarcoating.
Grounded in reality: Real stories, real lessons.
Improvement-first: A leader’s job is not charisma, but cultivating sustainable success.

Very interesting

Good to know more about the man behind the hoodie. I enjoyed it. I’m glad he was the voice.

Greatness in Words

He’s the goat. What do you expect? Principles to advise, all about consistency.. DO YOUR JOB.. great book

Great lessons

Coach Belichick summarizes and simplifies what to focus on keeping it simple, relatable, and actionable.

He should know!

This was a fun and practical book! The fact that Bill took the time to read it himself made it that much better. It was great learning how he learned leadership and then applied it. We should all realize that hard work and "doing your job" are essential to success but the coach makes it clear in practical ways. I could not stop listening and will certainly be a North Carolina fan now!

More than winning

This book resonated very strongly with me. Having been a high school football coach for 36 yrs it embodied everything that I had been taught to do as a young coach and other lessons I gleaned along the way. I attended a coaching clinic at The University of Alabama right after Saban was hired and he brought Belichick in as a speaker. I soaked up everything he had to say Here was what would become the coach with the most Super Bowl wins and he’s talking to us about basic schemes and winning culture. Hearing him do this book was like a flash back to 2007. Summed up he would tell you what we told our kids almost everyday. Do your job and be tough. Doesn’t matter your line of work do your job better than anyone else and be tough. Toughness goes a long way