“I tell young players who want to be coaches, who think they can put up with all the headaches and heartaches, can you live without it? If you can live without it, don’t get in it.”

I’m no innovator. If anything I’m a stealer, or borrower. I’ve stolen or borrowed from more people than you can shake a stick at.

In order to have a winner, the team must have a feeling of unity; every player must put the team first ahead of personal glory.

Have a plan. Follow the plan, and you’ll be surprised how successful you can be. Most people don’t have a plan. That’s why it’s easy to beat most folks.

If anything goes bad, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, we did it. If anything goes real good, then you did it. That’s all it takes to get people to win football games for you.

Sacrifice. Work. Self-discipline. I teach these things, and my boys don’t forget them when they leave.

There is a big difference in wanting to and willing to.

I can reach a kid who doesn’t have any ability as long as he doesn’t know it.

Football games are generally won by the boys with the greatest desire.

The first time you quit, it’s hard. The second time, it gets easier. The third time, you don’t even have to think about it.

There is no substitute for guts.

I don’t hire anybody not brighter than I am. If they’re not brighter than I am, I don’t need them.

Don’t tolerate lazy people. They are losers.

If you don’t have discipline, you can’t have a successful program.

You must learn how to hold a team together. You must lift some men up, calm others down, until finally they’ve got one heartbeat. Then you’ve got yourself a team.

Be aware of “yes” men. Generally, they are losers. Surround yourself with winners. Never forget – people win.

In life, you’ll have your back up against the wall many times. You might as well get used to it.

I do not think, like people say, that I am a guru or I know everything.

To be an influencer, you have to love people before you can try to lead them.

Time management is an oxymoron. Time is beyond our control, and the clock keeps ticking regardless of how we lead our lives. Priority management is the answer to maximizing the time we have.

I just lead my life as naturally, as normally as I possibly can. But I can’t help it if controversy is hounding me day in and day out. I’m quite amazed sometimes by the way they go about it. I grow a beard and it lands up in the editorial in The Times of India.

I’ve always been privileged to play for Coach Belichick, who I’ve always said is the best coach in the history of the league.

As far as being a coach, it’s always fascinated me. It’s a greater responsibility than most people give it credit for because you’re dealing with people.

Every proprietor owes to the community a ground-rent for the land which he holds.

Leadership is not about titles, positions or flowcharts. It is about one life influencing another.