This is a question I have faced many times during my career. Your personal life can affect your work in so many ways, it could be anything from a few late nights that make you feel tired in the office to have real stress at home that really does impact your performance. How do you stop what is happening at home from interfering with your office persona? Here are a few of my tips if you ever feel less than … click to continue
I’ve written two blog posts on interview questions specific to PAs, EAs and admin assistants and they have both proved to be very popular so I thought I’d add another ten questions that I have been asked at various interviews over the years and my answers for them. 1. Why should we employ you rather than one of the other candidates? Use this question to really sell yourself. You do want the interviewer to pick you so really emphasis your strong points, … click to continue
. Congratulations you got the job, you’ve worked your notice, you have bought a few outfits and now you are sitting at your desk ready to face the challenges of a new role. Hopefully you would have been interviewed by your new manager so you will have gained some understanding of what they are like and what they require from you. Nevertheless it can be a daunting prospect working with a total stranger, especially as a PA/EA because we do … click to continue
. . . In last week’s blog I wrote about assistants working together as a team and part of the blog discussed how we should cover for each other when one of us is off sick or on holiday. Once the blog was published I had a couple of people tweet to say that cover for other assistants is hard work and can be a thankless task so I thought I’d follow up with the questions you need to ask … click to continue
Unfortunately most people have lost a job in one way or another over the course of their career; they have either been let go before the end of their probation, fired or made redundant. It definitely seems the way of the world where no job is guaranteed for life anymore. This isn’t a topic I would generally blog about as I do prefer to write about happier more upbeat things but I have been made redundant in the past and … click to continue
Pin It I was chatting to a friend of a friend the other night and was asked that all important question ‘what do you do?’ I went with my usual response of ‘I’m an Executive Assistant’ only to be slightly more probed with the follow up question ‘Oh right… What do Executive Assistants do exactly?’ As I had a few drinks and wasn’t really in the mood to talk through my CV and current skill set my off the … click to continue
During the month of August myself and my colleagues are allowed to dress in a more casual manner than in any other month throughout the year which means that the guys in the office aren’t wearing ties and the women look pretty much the same. I’ve always thought that is one perk of being a women in that we have a variety of different clothes that we can wear in the office in winter and in summer that means we … click to continue
As you’ll know I’ve just started a new job and am in the process of learning how my manager likes to work. Mostly I’m figuring out how he wants me to manage his diary and emails but also how he prioritises his time, which calls he will take and if he really does have an open door policy. This is knowledge that an assistant can only gain over time but eventually it does become second nature and this is where … click to continue
Pin It This month is a bit of a fresh start for me, I’ve just turned a decade older and I’ve also just started a new job… this week in fact! It is all going well so far, as always lots to learn and new people to meet but I’m excited about the role and working for a different company with fresh challenges. There must be something in the air because I know a few people who are looking for … click to continue
I’ve written a few blogs recently on how to work with confidential documents particularity when your desk is in an open plan office. It is a subject that most assistants would have wrestled with in their career and at times probably have found themselves in a difficult position so I thought it would be good to discuss this over a few blogs. Today I will look at the following issues we face – how do we keep the confidential information … click to continue
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