PA and Secretary Community - Deskdemon.com

Hi everyone,

I consider myself a First Waver as described by Andrea in her great article and I just want to express how timely and true this article is for me at this stage of my career. I've been an EA for this company for 6 months and I'm starting to feel the same way as I did when I left my previous employer (after 7 months ) - that feeling of not doing anything significant, just the usual - making coffee, catering, book travel, copy this, print that, order stationery,take minutes, etc, etc.( I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about,my boss is ok but very independent.) It just seems that almost everything I'm doing is petty and trivial and hardly gives me any personal satisfaction. Perhaps it's just a stage I'm going through, or is it really the way it is? I've started thinking of a career change but there's really nothing else I can think of that I can do better. Hope you can all make me see things differently...

Ozzie! welcome back havent seen you for awhile.



It's not uncommon for "first Wavers" to feel the way you do when suddenly faced with work that doesn't challenge us and doesn't allow us to excel in our own eyes at least.



What's the solution? Hard to say.  I've just this minute finished posting an excellent article in Global Village about Mega Giant Corporation Glaxo-Wellcome's Secretaries of the Future project which :Gasp: hold onto your chairs...

Determined that Admins HAVE usable skills, listens to them and TAPS those skills. AND,,, GET this,, Admins created the program, took it through channels and got their company to REALLY pay attention.



I think first wavers will find themselves doing mre advocating for the profession in the next few years, and maybe that's as it should be.  Who better to effect change than those who were so pivotal IN the way the profession has changed.



Why not consider going to YOUR supervisor and asking what else you can be doing, maybe dropping the subtle hint that you're not being challenged will encourage your employer to consider what else you can be assisting him/her with, better still go armed with some ideas to present?



Study your employer's work for a few days or even weeks in preparation for your pitch, ask yourself where you could pick up certain tasks, and determine how best to present the idea to your boss carefully.



It's important that your boss knows you want to HELP, want more challenge and arent trying to expland your job out side of his/her perception of what it should be.



If you have skills that arent being fully utilized whether they are web design or you happen to be the resident budget wiz,, illustrate tasks you've undertaken in the past and make your pitch for helping out now, in this current postition.  There IS a place for you,, and sometimes,,,

you have to make it yourself!

Andrea





And let me know how it works out?