Bill Belichick explains decision to write book on his career

Bill Belichick can add published author to the list of his top accomplishments. His book, The Art of Winning: Lessons from My Life in Football, his shelves earlier this month, ahead of his first season as the head coach at North Carolina.

It’s coming out at an interesting time in the coach’s life. He decided to sit down and pick up the pen during his season off from the sidelines, amid his highly-publicized relationship with girlfriend Jordon Hudson. As Belichick prepares to turn the page and lead the Tar Heels, he joined Michael Strahan on Good Morning America to dish on what went into him writing his book.

“I had an opportunity to do it,” Belichick answered, regarding why now was the time for him to become an author. “I thought about it several years ago. When you’re in a moment, you’re in the season, there’s no off-season. You’re just running. On the treadmill and running. Last year, had a little more time to do it, and was able to collect some thoughts. Brought back a lot of good memories. Some not so good ones, as well. You know, you sacking us and all that. But it was a great, great opportunity to just get some thoughts on paper and put it together.

“It’s not about how to live your life. It’s how I did my job. If there’s a lesson in it for somebody, great. Hopefully there’s some entertaining stories.”

Alas, Belichick is being a bit modest. His story is certainly an inspirational one, and the way he approached football might provide some valuable life lessons to his readers. As for the stories he told in his book, he couldn’t go without speaking about his former quarterback Tom Brady, of course.

“After every game, Tom always was like, ‘We left a lot of points on the field. We can be better.’ We might win by 30 and it’ll be like, ‘We could’ve won by another 20. I missed this pass. We missed that play.’ He’s always striving for perfection,” Belichick shed some light on. “You think about Tom, you think about improvement. That’s really what football is about.

“You play once a week. You’ve got six days to prepare, six days to improve and get ready for the game. Tom Brady was a fourth-string quarterback. He was a fourth-string quarterback and ended up being the greatest player of all time. That’s a lot of work. That’s a lot of dedication. That’s a lot of a lot of commitment and discipline. He’s really the poster boy for improvement and consistency.”

All told, it’s easy to see why Bill Belichick’s book would be a compelling read, as he has a myriad of stories about some of football’s legends, including himself. His year off from coaching must’ve been odd for him, but his book might’ve made it all worth it, before his return to the sidelines.