Penn State coach James Franklin was one of four panelists at the American Football Coaches Association's Graduate Assistant Career forum this week.

The AFCA held its annual convention in Charlotte, where coaches from all over the country come to meet, network and sometimes interview. As a panelist, Franklin answered questions from a group of current and prospective coaches looking to break into and advance within the business. Below is a sampling of Franklin's answers, courtesy of of FootballScoop.com.

Q: What’s the best way to build your network?

Franklin: Your resume means nothing. I’ve never looked at a resume, ever. Your references mean nothing. I’m not calling your references, I’m calling the people that I know. I’m not working with someone 16-to-17 hours a day if I don’t know them or someone that I trust knows them.

Q: What traits do you look for when hiring a GA?

Franklin: Be authentic. Be true to who you are. I love people who are comfortable in their own skin, people who own who they are. My DFO is a complete weirdo, but he owns it. He’s constantly challenging me by sliding business and leadership articles under my door. I’m a complete psychopath. I have to own that. David Shaw is a great friend of mine; I can’t be stoic like David Shaw, I have to be a psychopath. If you’re a South Florida guy, a Northeast guy, own that. What’s going to make you special is what God intended you to be in the first place.

Penn State defensive line coach Sean Spencer.

Q: How do you weigh the opportunity to be an FBS position coach against being a lower-division coordinator?

Franklin: There is value on staff in guys that don’t want to be head coaches. One of the reasons we hired our d-line coach at Vanderbilt [current Penn State defensive line coach Sean Spencer] is because he said, ‘I don’t want to be a head coach, I don’t want to be a coordinator, I want to be the best d-line coach in the country.’ My offensive coordinator [Ricky Rahne] doesn’t want to be a head coach. He told me, ‘I see you being pulled out of your office 40 percent of the day dealing with drama. I just want to coach ball.’

Q: How do you turn yourself into an effective recruiter?

Franklin: Recruiting isn’t work to me, it’s driving out to see buddies I’ve had for 25 years in this business. At the end of the day it’s about how you treat people. That’s true in football and in life. If you’re in this business you’re in it for the people. The schemes are great and fundamentals are important, but it’s about people.

Q: What’s something you can do in the slow times at the office to invest in your career?

Franklin: I think curiosity is one of the best traits you can possibly have in any line of work. One thing we try to do in the spring is the defense clinics the offense, and vice versa. If you have NFL scouts come, ask them what they look for an in o-lineman, what they look for in a corner. If you want to be a head coach, take your AD to lunch one day.