Coffee Break Confidential. Real-Life Tales from Assistants

Once, one of my bosses, being very wise man, told me – look, you shouldn’t spend your energy on this, you shouldn’t be upset, because they are not the only ones whom you will meet in your life being the people, who are not on one side with you. And it is normal. We all have people in our teams who work differently, who don’t have the same approach – hey, let’s do it, let’s run, do it faster, better, etc. No.

I should say, that really, sometimes, it is being very upset thing, when you don’t see the feedback in the eyes of your colleagues, when you propose good reasonable things to be done. And it’s not about how easy it can be to talk to them. No, we absolutely calmly can meet during lunch and discuss ordinary processes, but when it comes to do a little bit more or, what is more important, differently, please, be welcome to the club of witches who push them, and try to make confusion in their established life.

And it is ok. Sooner or later it will move. Because in the terms of current economy situation business cannot wait too long when everybody wake up. But in every team we have such people. And it is ok as, well, we are all different. There is nothing ideal in our life. You need to show more flexibility communicating with people around us. Be sure – they know their job, but being slow, they can be annoying in their wish to keep things as they are. From psychological point of view, they want to keep the stability. This helps them to keep balance. We know that business world is very fast and we should be very flexible in our approaches. But, keep calm and just accept the fact that you cannot expect all to run as you do. Marathon distance is always different to different people. Be generous in understanding others.

We Can Do Everything in 24 hours

Probably, I will upset somebody, but no. Not everything, not always, could be done in 24 hours. That is life. And here I would like to share few tips, which I use to organize myself.

First of all, our job is very multifunctional and requires high speed. But, even if you have all qualities of a perfect assistant, you will not be able to fulfil everything in 24 hours, just because we’re all human being. But, you can try and organize yourself to make maximum out of possible, pay attention to everything and everybody and remember about yourself.

1. And the first from the list is… ta-dam! Rest! Find the time for rest. In terms of stress your body presses button for energy saving, which as you remember you don’t have enough, and your ability to work efficiently reduces. So, the main thing is – to have lunch. And 15—20 minutes per day to have small break. One of my colleagues shared her experience, during the day – she goes out of office to breathe – 5—7 minutes. Even your Apple Watch pushes you to stand up, to breathe! So, please, start doing this. Keeping phone silent (nobody will die if you not answer the call immediately). Your ability to organize your own rest will have the direct impact on how you feel and how you work. And, of course, sleep is also important.

2. Split the tasks according to importance. Make the list, keep the reminders on iPhone or mail, no difference. I know that we all love to do things now, straight away. But, no. You should know the limit and keep balance. Split the tasks by people or timelines.

3. You can join 2 or 3 tasks in one. There are personal and business tasks, which can done in one time. Sometimes, it helps a lot. For example. If I order corporate gifts and I know that I will need something personally, I make 1 order, splitting the invoice into two parts. I don’t spend additional time for gifts, shops, etc. Think few minutes – if I need something – and then go and order.

4. Learn how to work with colleagues and partners. You do not do everything by yourself and, what is more important, you should not. Learn how to delegate. Yes, most of us have problems. Because we know better, we can do faster, and easier. Stop. The number of tasks has the rule – they increase. And you need to think ahead and learn how to make your life easier. Especially it’s related to travel agencies, to different services. They get money. So, use the resource. Most of assistants are “red”. Recently I’ve read the book by Thomas Erikson “Surrounded by idiots”. And this definition “red” is taken from this book. Read it, it’s interesting approach. Then I spoke with few of my colleagues, and we must admit, that does not matter which “color” you are. Most of assistants are “red” at work. And this is also influence on our communication with colleagues. Learn how to be more flexible. Not all are so speedy as we are.

5. Make simple tasks straight away. Don’t store them. If it is one call which is needed or letter – do it. You even do not have to add this to your list. Just done and that’s it. Small and not urgent tasks make the garbage in your head. For example, if you should remind your colleague about something – write letter and close the deal. It is 1 minute. If not – you will always feel like you have a lot of and nothing at the same time. And despite that it’s very little things, it will influence on your work load.

6. Come to office earlier. I know, I know… we all want sleep. But morning without boss and colleagues makes you calm and gives you opportunity to work with documents, drink coffee in a relax mode, remember all small things to be finished. Calm morning – it’s a great tool. And an excellent start of a new working day.

7. Your working place should be ideal. No old papers, no invoices, which should be in accounting, no bills and etc. When you go home your table should be almost empty. The same with Outlook. Make folders, split mails. Organize everything with maximum efficiency to use it, with minimum time to find. Your time is precious. Learn how to use it properly.

And finally, small advice. Say thank to yourself. And make sure that in order to keep up, you get high on what you are doing. Our bosses not always have time to say thank you. It doesn’t mean they do not want. No. But, their time is running faster than ours. So, sometimes, remind yourself that you’re well done! Because without us – their working day would be much more complicated ☺

II. What Do I Think About Reception?

Once I’ve heard a very interesting opinion that secretary person it’s just – tea\coffee, meet guests… To say that I was “a little bit” surprised – it’s to say nothing. The true is that the modern world is very fast, very energetic, and to meet the requirements every person in your team should be Very Professional. And the reception secretary is part of it and the first one to prove the company’s image. Personally, I think that reception person should not have a lot of experience. It’s easier to learn how to work in your company and help to set up the proper mind and understanding of the processes. But, in general, what do we look for when we try to find the “ideal” candidate for this role?

• Look. Definitely. You will never afford jeans or extra make up. The understanding of how you should look like on this position, one of the key success to get the job. And Fridays are not an exception.

• Smile. It’s easy to bring coffee. But, is it easy to be happy to see everybody from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.? If you have never tried – do this. Just try. I would say, that sometimes this job would be more complicated than to be a PA.

• Willing to help everyone. Absolutely everyone. And, how about this? To find the proper solution even if you do not know where to run.

• Answering the phone calls. 10th, 50th, 100th… With smile in voice and absolute desire to convince the caller that we are happy to hear him\her.

• Punctuality. And better to come in advance for 10—15 minutes to be able have a look if everything is fine in conference rooms and etc. The reception person just cannot be late. Cannot. That’s it.

• Stress resistance. When two or three people stand near you and all need urgent help already yesterday. To make sure that you pay attention to everyone, keep the deadlines. It’s not an easy task.

This is at least what I have thought about when was searching for “ideal” candidate. And the list is not full. However, we used to think that every person could be easily replaced, well, yes, it’s true. But, to find the right one it could become your real headache. I convinced that reception secretary is a very complicated job, and true professionals can grow from this profession.

III. About Boss

Why Would I Work for a Bad Company or a Bad Boss

First of all, let me clarify – we talk about a bad company or a bad boss according to how we define “bad”, and whether or not we belong in a particular organization.

If you don’t belong or fit well in a particular organization, there is no reason why you should stay there. Even if you’re paid a lot of money. The only possible and acceptable exception – which I hope none of us has faced or would ever face in our lives – is when we have to stay because there is truly no choice. No choice because you absolutely need the job. Without it you cannot pay bills, buy food, support your family and your life. This should be the only reason why you would ever consider working in a bad place. By “bad” place I mean, of course, a job you don’t like, a company you don’t like, a boss you don’t like, colleagues you don’t like, etc. But even in these circumstances working at such a job should just be a temporary measure while you look for the job you would love to have.

Some assistants who have just started their career try to work in a prestigious company with a well-known person, and sometimes they don’t understand the price they pay. But the same goes for small companies and unknown executives – the issue will be the same. A good situation is if you really love your boss and the company. Even if there are some complicated situations, you simply don’t care about all these problems. Because you love your boss and your company, these situations don’t matter to you. You wake up in the morning and you’re totally happy because you want to go to work.

But, and there is a big but, if you are not comfortable because of the boss, or because of the company, and you don’t look for something else – it will become you biggest problem. When you work at a job where you truly don’t belong, where the atmosphere is uncomfortable, the challenge is you can start thinking that this situation is normal. This is something you must guard against because it is not normal and you should not consider it normal. If you accept the circumstances, which should not be accepted by default – the result could be that you get sick often, get stressed, or worse, you could fall into depression.

Many of us have forgotten that we should be happy at work. You should be happy in what you do, where you do it, and whom you work for. But, very often we’re afraid to take that step and check the market and try to find a better job. We try to convince ourselves that things are fine, we can handle it, we are strong, we can put up with the situation for another year.

Mentally, we accept the bad terms and are afraid to change something. A simple example: I would never work with someone who smokes. Good salary, good location? No, no, no! I cannot handle the smell of cigarettes. If I breathe it – I feel unhealthy.

Working in a place where you don’t feel good about the job or the environment is bad for your mental health. Speak to psychologists. They will tell you that there is nothing worse than being in a place where you feel nervous all the time, it’s even worse than breathing cigarette smoke.

So other than the necessity I mentioned earlier, there is no reason to accept working somewhere where you are not happy. I have a lot of examples in my career when I meet assistants and they look very, very tired. They don’t look happy. They look as though they are barely surviving.

Work should be a very nice and attractive journey. Yes, we should learn how to work in different companies and with different people. And you should try. But, if you are sure it is not a good match – look for another job. Otherwise your work life will be one of trying to survive.

As Jan Jones, author of “The CEO’s Secret Weapon” told me, “You cannot do your best, most productive work if you are in an environment that doesn’t promote or support your mental and physical well-being. If there are tweaks or changes that can be made to your workplace by discussing the situation with your boss, you should do so. You may be surprised to learn that they value you and would like to make the changes in order to keep you and improve the overall workplace morale. But if your efforts fall on deaf ears, you should consider making a move. Otherwise, your creativity and motivation will suffer and you may develop negative work habits. Low morale workplaces are simply not conducive to high performance”.

What Kind of Boss You Are: Mistaken or Learning?

This is a differentiation for me here when I try to understand what kind of boss I talk to. We all make mistakes. I’ve never ever seen an assistant who doesn’t do mistakes. Actually haven’t seen any other my colleague who does not. There are no ideal people, there are ideal intentions – somebody said.

Long ago, one of the company’s owners whom I talked to said, that it’s much more efficient to learn people, then to criticize them. He said, “I do never tell people, that they have done a mistake. We try to discuss the situation and understand why it happened as it is and look for a proper solution to learn how not to do in future. Maybe this is the reason why I have many employees working with me for 8—10 years and more. I do really appreciate their adherence to my company. This is the trust which cannot be replaced by anything”.

Obviously, for many of us critics it’s a kind of a signal that we need to review our approaches, but on the other hand, many of us are very upset to find out that something wrong was done. When we see the understanding that nobody is ideal and to be mistaken – it is ok, and the approach is to learn together and talk – this is absolutely another story. For company it means much more loyal employees, because nobody likes to be criticized. Of course, depends on situation, but in most cases – to be learnt is more efficient.

Is it worth to say that when we are afraid to be mistaken – our chances to mess up grow rapidly?

So, if you’re the boss, what kind of boss you are – mistaken or learning?

IV. Where to Find Time for Everything? Be in the Stream

Sometimes, I’ve being asked – you have a lot of everything, how do you find time, any secrets from time management point of view? Well, probably yes, but on the other side, it’s only 24 hours in a day and nobody can do everything. And I’m the human being like others, and it’s sometimes difficult to be everywhere. But…

I will tell just you – I almost don’t use calendar. I have only one set up on my phone, and it’s more like reminder, but not calendar. It doesn’t mean that I don’t plan – of course I do. But, the value is not in planning, the value is in determining what matters for you and simply doing it to achieve what you want. Exactly doing. It means that I try not to spend the precious time for something I don’t like. It might very well be that you will think something like – hey, we cannot do just what we want. Yes, it’s true. But to be in the stream with your own wishes and move step by step to be more and more involved in what really matters for you, it’s the whole art, I will tell you. And I learn. I learnt, and I continue doing.

And the job it’s also the part of it. There will be no success if you are not in the stream. You will never find time, if you’re not in the stream. And to make time for what matters – it’s exactly the main and on the top of all secrets. Because there are no secrets at all. There is just your wish to understand what you really want. We all have the capacity to do more, we all have energy, but you can see the result only if you move the right direction. Your right direction. Your stream.

V. How is that – To Be Proactive?

The question seems to be silly, but I decided to stop by because personally faced the situation that sometimes my young colleagues cannot understand what it is exactly about.

For example, you’re working during 1—2 years on the position where there is only one requirement – do well what you’re asked for. Then you found another job in another company where the basic principal is – that nobody will push you.

Btw, most of Western companies work like this. Yes, you have initial responsibilities, but to be able to achieve something in this company (and what is more important to grow) means that you should take more than is expected from you.

Always to be at least one step ahead…

Shortly, to be proactive means:

• do more (take on not only listed tasks in your job description);

• look around (there are always issues with processes and etc., pay attention to these issues);

• think about the possible decisions (when you find out the problem);

• think about implementation of what you have proposed;

• learn to listen and hear comments of your colleagues.

To be proactive means – that you should run for the job, and not vice versa. To wait when somebody will come and propose you something will not work. In this case, your reputation in the company will be zero.

Be open to new tasks, even if they are not in zone of your responsibility. Keep your eyes open and look around. There is always a lot of what should be done. You need just come and take it. This will increase your visibility in the company, will show your interest to develop yourself, help you to communicate more with your colleagues. And, all this – your way to career growth.

For example, you found out that there is a lack of communication between assistant’s block and one of the departments. Take the lead role, propose to your colleagues, that you will take this job and on, let’s say, monthly basis, will prepare the short communication letter with update. Agree on format, with your colleagues think about the content and move ahead. It’s simpler than it seems to be.

You need just one thing – start doing this.

VI. If Partners Can Help in Your Daily Routine?

Here, I would like stop by on the following. Assistants work not just with colleagues, but with companies-partners, who provide us different services. It can be travel support, events organization, suppliers (for example, furniture, food, etc.). And the reliable supplier – it’s a big help in our daily routine. I think it’s great when you find company and people there understand your needs, they do more, and try to find the best solution for you.

Of course, a lot depends on your skills as communicator. And this is also one of the skills which can be developed. Be sure that your partners stay with you during your whole career – doesn’t matter where you work. If you know that there are people whom you can rely on – it’s also your way to be more efficient.

And not to waste your time looking for the new supplier. Assistants have very limited free time. It should be spend with value.

When I come to new company, I always try to find out which suppliers company already work with and set up good relations with them in shortest period. Every supplier – from stationary to travel. If I need more, for example, private jets – I propose, evaluate the cost and we decide if we should sign the contract. It is myth that assistants should do everything by themselves. Nothing at all. It’s simply impossible. You should control others to do it for you.

I remember I had to arrange the corporate teambuilding in Portugal. Our local agency proposed interesting, but very expensive option. Usually, what you do – you send the request to travel agent and they book everything from tickets to food. But it costs too much. During our meeting with general director, my boss actually, we looked on costs, on budget and I told – let me organize myself. The question – are you sure that you can handle it – was not stupid, because they did not know that I have already done it once, you will read about this teambuilding further on in the book. So, why not?

But, should I say that of course I haven’t’ done everything by myself. The tickets were bought through our usual travel agent, whom we work with on a business trips. The hotel was booked directly in Portugal. The guide and transfers were found by asking my colleague in Portugal. Of course, they advised the local, much cheaper travel agent, who arranged everything from guide and excursions to food and presents. And we have made the economy of 2—3 thousands Euro I think.

So, if partners can help you? Of course. Should you use all the resources to make your life easier? Certainly yes. Should you talk to your colleagues and partners abroad and ask for help? Definitely.

VII. Confessional —

My Most Embarrassing Mistake

Assistants are very attentive people, and mistake it’s something more exceptional, than the rule. But sometimes, it happens.

I asked my colleagues to share stories about the mistakes they made in their work and tell them how they got out of difficult situations. Some of them are funny, and this proves once again that sometimes a sense of humour is essential in our work.

Funny thing – there are just few examples, because most of my colleagues couldn’t remember anything serious, and this is one more prove that assistants can do the mistakes, but improve the situation quickly and nobody knows about it ☺

“I forgot to order a taxi. To my luck, the hotel was not far from the office. When in the morning the chief came on foot and said that a car had not arrived behind him, there was no limit to my horror. I just started working in the company, and there it is. Despite this, the chief laughed, said that the walk helped him in the fight against obesity and no longer recalled the incident. I remember about it so far. But, for several years now, I have never forgotten about ordering a taxi. They say that they learn from mistakes” – Helen L.

“I confused the dates when booking tickets. It is good that I discovered this by myself a few days before departure. Thanks to a good relationship with the manager of the agency where we book tickets, I changed them without penalties” – Sandra T.

“My chef does not eat flour (pasta, bread, etc.). When ordering lunch to the office, I always ask to exclude croutons from the salad. We even had to once change the restaurant, when in the one we use, the toasts were nevertheless put several times. Chef is very angry. And then, whether I was running in, or at the same time answering the call, in general, having already placed the food on the table in the office, I looked at the salad, and on top lay a pile of toasts. Well, I did not check it… it was too late to rush with a plate to the kitchen through the whole office; in the corridor I heard the voice of the chief. In general, I had to shove the croutons from the salad into my jacket pocket. Then I shook crumbs for a long time” – Ashley S.

“My boss asked to order flowers to one of our partners, and the addresses were mixed up. So, the flowers were delivered to another partner (luckily, she was woman too!). Surprise! I don’t remember what kind of explanation my boss gave to the lady, who has got flowers by mistake. But, of course, we had to order another ones. We laughed and the point was taken for future to double check everything” – Ingrid F.

And what is your the most embarrassing mistake? ☺

VIII. You Will Never Know What You Have To Do Today

Sometimes, the requests from your boss can be strange, and sometimes funny. So, if colleagues tell you that you need sense of humor – trust us, because we know why.

So, what else we can do. My list is:

• To communicate with his\her “ex”;

• To receive the permission from landlord to paint the wall in apartment into pink;

• To walk with dog in the middle of working day in the city center;

• Bake cake and stand quietly on the sideline until boss tries to prove that did it himself;

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