O'Neil Blake - Tips For New Football Coaches

Since he started working as a Football Graduate Assistant for Lenoir-Rhyne University, O'Neil Blake has been able to develop a deeper understanding of the role that coaches play in developing young prospects and ensuring they can perform in competitive games. If you are new to coaching, you should try to keep all of the following in mind to ensure you offer your best to your players.

Learn The Rules
While you should have a good understanding of the rules of the game from your playing days, coaches have an increased responsibility to learn all of the ins and outs of football so that they can provide guidance to their teams on what they can and can’t do. In particular, it is crucial that you spend time researching any changes to the rules so that you can relay them to your team.

Get Feedback
The feedback that you receive from your team and your fellow coaches will prove vital to your development, so make sure to listen to anybody who is willing to talk to you about your work. Being able to critique yourself based on this feedback will offer you the tools that you need to make improvements that benefit the team.

Have Fun
While you should always take your training sessions seriously, O'Neil Blake Football notes that most football players got into the game because they enjoy it. As such, don’t be afraid to have a little bit of fun, when the situation calls for it, as this will reinforce your passion for the game and boost the morale of your team.

O'Neil Blake, Former Collegiate Football Player - How To Get Healthcare Administration Experience

After completing his undergraduate studies at Lenoir-Rhyne University, where he graduated with Magna Cum Laude honors in Sociology in addition to being a collegiate football standout, O'Neil Blake attended graduate school at the same institution, graduating with his Masters of Business Administration, with a concentration on Healthcare Administration, in May 2016. He is now focused on obtaining the experience that he needs to carve out a career in the healthcare administration industry. The following pointers should prove useful to any former students who are looking to do the same.

Know Your Discipline

Healthcare administration is a vast field, so it is important to understand the specific role that you wish to work in before you start searching for employment opportunities. Failure to do so could lead to a lack of focus in your efforts and may also result in you starting down a career path that you find unsatisfying. You should have considered you desired area when selecting your educational courses, so make sure that your efforts are focused entirely on gaining experience in that area, starting with your collegiate studies.

Investigate Internships

Many graduates make the mistake of disregarding the value of internships, often because they pay less than full-time positions, assuming they even pay at all. However, they can prove to be invaluable when it comes to developing experience within your chosen area of healthcare administration, in addition to potentially providing opportunities for full-time employment at the facility where you intern. Upon landing an internship, make it a point to work as hard as possible by demonstrating enthusiasm for every task you are given and asking questions of those with more experience than you to discover what else you can do to further your career.

Consider Additional Courses

While your formal education will prove invaluable as you search for roles within the industry, you should not assume that what you already know is going to be enough. Healthcare as a general industry is constantly evolving, so it is a good idea to demonstrate that you have a desire to keep learning and developing your own skills. Furthermore, by enrolling in additional courses you can learn more about the discipline that you hope to work in. You will find that there are many seminars and courses available, many of which are completely free of charge.

Be Proactive

O'Neil Blake Football, who is a former collegiate football player, recognizes the value of showing initiative in order to further your career. Instead of just waiting for opportunities to come your way, try being a little proactive by contacting institutions that you believe could provide you with valuable experience. Even if they have nothing available for you at the time of calling, you will place yourself on their radars should a position come up.