The Power of Negative Thinking: An Unconventional Approach to Achieving Positive Results

Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking, a classic bestseller, has inspired an optimistic perspective for millions of Americans. Now, in an inspirational and entertaining rebuttal, the legendary basketball coach Bob Knight explains why “negative thinking” will actually produce more positive results, in sports and in daily life. Coach Knight, the second-winningest coach in NCAA history with 902 victories, explains that victory is often attained by the team that makes the fewest mistakes. His coaching philosophy was to instill discipline by “preparing to win” rather than hoping to win. That meant understanding the downside and drilling his teams to prevent the things that could go wrong. And when his teams did win, he made sure they didn’t dwell on their success, but rather looked immediately to the challenges of the next game. He applies this lesson to business strategy as well.

Coach Knight has long been inspired by his grandmother’s words, "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.” As the first person to teach Knight about the power of negative thinking, this book is dedicated to her pragmatic spirit.

Bob Knight compiled one of the greatest records ever in college basketball: 5 National Coach of the Year awards, 3 NCAA championships, 11 Big Ten championships, an Olympics championship, and 902 victories overall, along with achieving a near-perfect graduation rate for his players. Knight is also a featured commentator for ESPN’s college basketball coverage, on camera at least once a week. His first book, Knight: My Story, spent five weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Bob Hammel is the coauthor of both books.