We all know the benefits for team and personal morale of giving positive feedback. The weird thing is that when we are on the receiving end we can often be guilt of reading it, feeling momentarily happy and validated and then moving on and never looking at it again.
In this episode, Liz shares why it makes such good sense to create a filing system or a repository for positive feedback you receive, whatever form it comes in.
Because Liz is an Evernote tragic, this is her platform of choice for filing such feedback. In Episode 45 she shares how she does it and why. A clue is in Episode 44 where her ongoing struggle with the dreaded imposter syndrome is discussed.
Liz opens up about how anxiety and confidence issues have got in the way of her bringing regular episodes out.
This is an issue Liz has fought on an ongoing basis, in Episode 8 she discussed feeling like an imposter.
This week is Part 2 of my two-part Road Rambling. It's a wrap-up of what was an excellent EA Leadership Summit 2017 run by The Growth Faculty. In the episode I share my thoughts on why our bosses need to see that we're human (in my opinion) and how it doesn't help us to appear infallible and how Libby Moore's presentation demonstrated why no one ever got promoted for being the best at Excel or Powerpoint!!
Email me to say hello or let me know topics you would like me to cover in future episodes.
liz@beingindispensable.com or connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn of course.
This week is Part 1 of my two-part Road Rambling. It's a wrap-up of what was an excellent EA Leadership Summit 2017 run by The Growth Faculty as well as an overview of the content I will be sharing on the 30th August 2017 when I present 2 X 45 minute sessions at the Office Professionals Workshop in Adelaide. This event is being run by Catherine Middleton (that would be the other Catherine Middleton, not the Duchess of Cambridge) of Office Dynamics Adelaide fame.
Tickets are still available and I would love love love to see you there if you are a 'Radelaide' Executive Assistant or Office Professional.
http://officedynamicsadelaide.com.au/office-professionals-workshop-program/
In next weeks episode I will share some of my key takeaways from the EA Leadership Summit 2017.
Email me to say hello or let me know topics you would like me to cover in future episodes.
liz@beingindispensable.com or connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn of course.
In this episode Liz explains her recent podcasting hiatus and shares the reasons why her break has been so fulfilling. Liz is also looking forward to attending the EA Leadership Summit in her capacity as a member of the Advisory Panel and presenting at the Office Professionals Workshop in Adelaide on the topic of knowing yourself, knowing your boss and knowing your job.
EA Leadership Summit - Sydney, Wednesday 9th August tickets still available here
Office Professionals Workshop - Adelaide, Wed 30th August, tickets available here
Episode #40 of Being Indispensable shines a light on two Executive Assistants (or Administrative Assistants as they are known in the USA) who work at Nvidia in Santa Clara, California.
The company description on Wikipedia summarises them as follows:
Nvidia Corporation is an American technology company based in Santa Clara, California. It designs graphics processing units for the gaming and professional markets, as well as system on a chip units for the mobile computing and automotive market.
In simple language, they have designed a really fast chip that until recently was well know amongst gamers because of it's speed. With the increasing requirement for faster processing in enterprise computing as well as the wave of Artificial Intelligence that is building, they are gaining interest and attention for the potential the chips have in these areas. In the same way as we used to think of "Intel Inside" for personal computing, it's now becoming "Nvidia Inside" in the enterprise space.
Carla Dutra and Cid Dias are two of many Administrative Assistants at Nvidia. They kindly agreed to speak to me during their lunch hour and in the interviews they share how they came to Nvidia, who they support and some of the reality of their day to day role.
The gold in these conversations is that Carla and Cid epitomise the concept of the EA or AA as brand ambassador. Their genuine enthusiasm for their role and the organisation, their warmth and generosity made a wonderful impression on me and this typifies how they show up in their roles. This is one of the values that Executive Assistants bring to their organisation. They are often the first impression of the company and the interaction they have with people has the power to make or break a person's perception of their company. All credit goes to these two ladies for the way they conduct themselves and for demonstrating this essential trait of indispensable assistants.
For more information on the Executive Assistant as ambassador read this post from Office Dynamics website.
Carla and Cid are both on LinkedIn.
One thing I find really unfortunate about the realm of Executive Assistant forums is the way there seems to be a tacit acceptance that it's okay to judge each other. As someone who has come to focus on this profession having experienced the world of Selling professionals and Marketing professionals it's something I find quite curious. I've noticed that it seems normal for experts in the profession to jump on their soap box and tell EA's how they should and shouldn't behave.
In this weeks minisode, I ruminate on why it's important to consider that we can never really know what is going on for other people and how being kind should be the first response, no matter how hard that might be at times.
Staying calm under pressure is an important skill for Indispensable assistants to focus on. In Episode 38 Liz shares what it means to be unflappable, why it matters and three techniques to focus on that will help you project an aura of calm when in reality you might be feeling anything but.
Appearing to be unflappable requires us to control our primitive responses to stress and be less reactive. Having these three techniques in your kit bag will empower you to have control over your body language, your voice and your own internal responses to stressful situations.
Links to research & articles discussed in the episode:
7 Ways Leaders Maintain Their Composure In Difficult Times
Use Neuroscience To Remain Calm Under Pressure
Controlling Your Body Language In Stressful Situations
https://hbr.org/2014/11/how-to-handle-stress-in-the-moment
Listen to Art of Charm episode to get more tips on how to control your voice
The Focused Leader - HBR Article
Being Indispensable Episode 5 - Amy Cuddy research
Being Indispensable Episode 14 - Practising mindfulness
I'd love to hear your feedback on these techniques and how you stay calm under pressure. Email your feedback to liz@beingindispensable.com or connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn of course.
Episode 37 is the final episode in my miniseries devoted to helping you get your C-suite leader on the social media bandwagon. In this episode I discuss the elephant in the room - the fact that becoming your executives social media manager involves taking on additional workload which no doubt is the last thing you need as an Executive Assistant.
This fact hasn't escaped me and I'm loathe to be the cause of my listeners having something else to stress about. That being said, helping your executive get more engaged on LinkedIn is something that makes sense for a number of reasons (as I've discussed in Episode #34). In this final episode I attempt to help you get a handle on the benefits for you personally...because much as I love to help you position yourself as proactive and strategic (and of course be seen as an essential element in your bosses life), the reality is that there's got to be some sort of WIFM factor for you.
Hope you enjoy this final episode. Next week I promise not to even utter the words "LinkedIn" or "Social".
Please visit www.beingindispensable.com/episodes to find the link to the spreadsheet template discussed in the episode.
Email your feedback to liz@beingindispensable.com or connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn of course.
Part 3 of my series on how to help your C-Suite leader engage in social media, specifically LinkedIn. In this episode I outline a 5 step process of monitoring and observing the engagement of a targeted number of individuals and companies on LinkedIn. This data will inform the future planning for tactical engagement on LinkedIn.
By tracking these identified individuals and companies over a finite period of time, Executive Assistants will be building their own knowledge of the world their manager operates in as well as collecting information that will be invaluable in helping progress the conversation around how the executive can and should be actively engaging on LinkedIn.
This is classic 'red box' activity for Executive Assistants. It's all about thinking strategically and being proactive in support of your C-Suite leader.
Please visit www.beingindispensable.com/episodes to find the link to the spreadsheet template discussed in the episode.
Email your feedback to liz@beingindispensable.com or connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn of course.
Part 2 in my ongoing series on Helping Your Executive Get Social - being strategic and proactive in managing your business leaders social media engagement.
Episode 34 of Being Indispensable is the first of two episodes that focus on the way engaging in social media can be a great way of demonstrating how proactive, strategic and indispensable they can be. In the first episode Liz explains the benefits that Executives can gain if they harness the power of social media. The idea for these two episodes came from a post on LinkedIn written by Liz.
People now spend more time using social media than they do watching television and social media engagement is a top priority for most organisations today. Getting your Executive to understand why they need to make social media engagement a priority is something that is top of mind for indispensable assistants.
In Episode 34 it’s all about the WHY. Episode 35 will discuss the HOW with advice and practical tips to help put in place systems and processes that will enable Executives to start moving towards regular and consistent social media engagement.
Articles mentioned in today’s episode:
https://www.fastcompany.com/3056970/yes-even-ceos-need-to-use-social-media-and-do-it-well
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/13/the-surprising-reason-why-ceos-should-be-social-media-savvy.html
https://www.inc.com/john-rampton/10-ways-to-participate-in-social-media-strategy-as-ceo.html
2017 is a quarter complete and it's time to get an update on how Liz is tracking with her 'Words of 2017' as well as a Health & Wellness update. This part can be summarised as 'I'm Not Burying My Head In The Sand, I'm Just Running The Other Way'.
Liz shares the sneaky ways the urge to flee continues to make itself known & how she is channeling her inner Emu.
For a solo episode it's ended up being just over 30 minutes which only proves that Liz can truly talk about herself with no trouble at all!
Creating a strategic partnership with your C-Suite Executive is a topic of much discussion amongst Executive Assistants and educators in the profession. What is required to achieve this is something Liz discussed in a recent LinkedIn post. In this solo episode she shares the feedback she has received on the post and expands on the topic discussing how vital it is for the partnership to be a win/win situation for Executive Assistant and Executive.
PS If you know a friend who would enjoy the podcast I'd love it if you could tell them about it!
LinkedIn Post "The Executive Assistant As Strategic Partner" can be found here
HBR Article "What Executive Assistants Know About Managing Up", Melba Duncan discusses the Strategic Partnership can be found here
Mana defined can be found here
LinkedIn Post "The Game Has Changed. Have YOU" by Phoenix Normand can be found here
Coming to you from a park bench in downtown Palo Alto, California. More a garden ramble than a road ramble, Liz explains the purpose of her trip to the USA and how it's been a trip she's been looking forward to making ever since finishing Breast Cancer treatment. Enjoy a giggle as she recounts how in the pursuit of an interview with an indispensable assistant she goes from outwardly cool, calm and collected to a hot and sweaty mess.
Check out photos of Palo Alto on the Being Indispensable Facebook Page or on Instagram (@beingindispensable).
Make sure to Subscribe to Being Indispensable so you don't miss out on future episodes!
In Part 2 of my interview with Sue McComasky we discuss her role as National President of the Australian Institute of Office Professionals (AIOP) and why she is so passionate about what the mission of the organisation. AIOP is an organisation run by volunteers and it seeks to provide:
AIOP is the only national professional body for office professionals in Australia and has been in existence officially since 1963 but it's roots were formed in the 1950's when 12 secretaries sat for and passed what was then known as the Commonwealth Secretarial Examination. As the only organisation for Executive Assistants that is run by members, for members it has the best interests of members at it's heart and is ably led by Sue and her committee.
You can find more info on AIOP and membership information on their website
Sue McComasky is an indispensable Executive Assistant who is passionate about her role and the Business Leaders she supports. The intention of Being Indispensable has always involved providing a platform for Executive Assistants to be given the recognition for the amazing contribution they make to their respective organisations.
In Part 1 (Episode #29) of our interview, Sue talks about her role and her relationships with the CEO’s she has supported. Sue speaks with such humility but she is clearly highly valued as an Executive Assistant and she is a great ambassador for her organisation, GHD Australia.
In Part 2 (Episode #30) of our interview we discuss Sue’s role as National President of the Australian Institute of Office Professionals (AIOP) which is over 50 years old and is the only membership group in Australia which exists simply to support and educate office professionals. AIOP is a not-for-profit association that channels all money raised back into providing networking and education opportunities for members. AIOP recently underwent a complete rebrand and as a volunteer-run organisation it was a delight to be able to give Sue the opportunity to discuss the vision, mission and goals of AIOP and why it is a membership that Executive Assistants will benefit from.
Sue can be reached via AIOP and her LinkedIn profile is here
This week's solo episode is all about passion. Indispensable Executive Assistants demonstrate passion. They are passionate about their role, about their organisation and about the executive they support. It sets them apart from mediocre EA’s and it’s something that may require a mindset shift.
One of the ways that you can demonstrate passion is being able to passionately articulate your business leaders’ raison d’etre, their reason for being. This is effectively an ‘elevator pitch’, something that entrepreneurs and salespeople are well known for having. It’s a way of demonstrating that you are operating in that managerial mindset that Adam Fidler talks about.
One way of doing this is to use a modified version of Daniel Priestley's SOCIAL PITCH:
“Name, Same, Claim to fame, Goal to Game”
NAME - You and your position, name and your company name
SAME - What are you the same as, industry category (what would I google if I was trying to find you)
CLAIM TO FAME - something that makes your boss interesting to work for. It’s talking to why they are an interesting person to work for and demonstrating that
GOAL TO GAME - What's the short to goal that your boss is currently pursuing, what the big picture objective that they are working towards.
Can you put words around the GOAL TO GAME section? If not, you need to take steps to actually understand what you executive’s reason for being is. Another opportunity to initiate a conversation with them, to show them that you are a red box thinker and that you are thinking in that managerial mindset.
Should be able to get this out in around 30 seconds.
Will need to practice it, fine tune it.
In Part 2 of my interview Liz shares some initial results from her Survey of C-Suite Executives where she has been investigating how elements of Adam's EA Manifesto resonate with executives and their experience working with EA's. The results to do date reinforce that assistant's currently are not generally viewed as behaving strategically and operating with the 'managerial mindset' that Adam encourages. However, the results of the survey clearly show that executives want their EA's to demonstrate leadership traits.
Adam also shares a simple mindset hack to remind EA's to think as a manager and he also discusses how it is up to EA's to help their boss see them in a different light, as more 'Red Box' than 'Black box'.
Links to Connect with Adam and read about his thinking around the EA role:
Connect with Adam Fidler on LinkedIn
Adam Fidler Academy website
Adam Fidler’s “What I am” EA manifesto
A clip of Sophie Ellis-Bextor “Murder On The Dancefloor” is also included in this episode because it's fun and as discussed Liz loves Adam's dance floor metaphor for encouraging EA's to get out of the weeds!
The overarching theme of Adam’s work is about encouraging and enabling EA’s to align their behaviours with what is expected of a mid level manager and the sorts of EQ skills that are focused on in leadership development. He has a higher vision for the role which he articulates in his EA manifesto but rather than this vision being some sort of airy fairy, non-specific ideal he advocates for it being based on a proven foundation of skills development.
Connect with Adam Fidler on LinkedIn
Adam Fidler Academy website
Sophie Ellis-Bextor “Murder On The Dancefloor”
Adam Fidler’s “What I am” EA manifesto
Liz has developed a 5 step process to identifying the skills, values and behaviours that will make you an indispensable Assistant to your business leader.
Step 1 is to conduct a personal skills audit. In this episode, the first in a five part series to be released over coming weeks, Liz outlines two different approaches to conduct a personal skills audit. Liz also discusses how the results of this exercise will form the basis for Step 3 which is to identify what indispensable looks like to your business leader and how Adam Fidler’s Executive Assistant ‘manifesto’ which he formulated through his coaching and training work with EA’s may serve as a useful conversation starter.
Resources discussed in this episode
'5 Steps To Being Indispensable' Factsheet - download on the website www.beingindispensable.com
Adam Fidler Executive Assistant role description
Vickie Evan’s Tech Savvy Assistant diagrams
Tools like MBTI, Strengthfinder and the DISC profile are also valuable to helping you ‘flesh’ out the total picture of what you bring to your role. Learn more about these tools via the links:
A solo episode sharing an aha moment that Liz has experienced in the process of developing a new intro for the podcast. It’s a short 15 minute episode this week ruminating on the confidence that comes from realising that in order to be an advocate and influencer in the Executive Assistant space she doesn't need to have been the ‘best’ Executive Assistant that has ever done the role. That it's legitimate and perfectly okay to be passionate about giving a voice to those who are the ‘best’ and that by doing so her role as an influencer of the values and behaviours that make an EA indispensable is valid and useful.
Podcast mentioned (Glen Carlson interviewed on Business Addicts) can be found here
Sonia Petersen has over 15 year's experience as an Executive Assistant working with successful leaders within the construction industry. She is passionate about operations and driving efficiency and really enjoys the collaborative nature of the Executive Assistant role. Amongst her fellow EA’s she is known for her dedication to support and inspire others which she has done by informally mentoring and coaching other Executive Assistants. This is such a passion for her that she has recently began a side hustle business offering individual and group coaching around Wellbeing at Work. Sonia truly believes that if we focus on our wellbeing we will see improvements not just in our health but also in our ability to build relationships as well as increased productivity and even greater success.
For those of us that are working on being indispensable these outcomes are what we’re looking for. As I have shared with you, when your wellbeing and wellness is challenged everything else is affected and your ability to show up as indispensable is compromised...and we don’t want that!
As Sonia describes on her website
“My goal is to create a movement for Executive Assistants and Corporate Women to be respected and recognised, to be united and empowered in what we do as a profession”
Key Takeaways from our discussion:
Dowload a free copy of Sonia's eBook 'Unstick The Stuck' A Woman's Guide to Finding Career Clarity, Creating a Life You Love and Taking Care of Your Well-being' at soniapetersen.com.au
As Founder and Managing Director of leading boutique office support recruitment company EST10, Roxanne Calder brings a fresh approach to the table. Roxanne established EST10 in 2010 and from the launch of the company has sought to differentiate EST10 from other recruiters through the way they engage with employers and candidates with integrity and demonstrating through their actions passion and a commitment to finding the very best talent. In fact over 80% of EST10s business comes from referrals and repeat business.
I was keen to interview Roxanne because I admire the way EST10 puts their money where their mouth is in the way they support the EA profession through their marketing activities including an annual EA of the year award and their sponsorship of development opportunities for EAs such as the EA Leadership Forum. In addition, EST10 sponsors opportunities for EAs to network and share their experiences at round table events and other organised events.
The key takeaways from my discussion with Roxanne include:
I love the fact that Roxanne herself is a successful female entrepreneur and we need to hear more of these stories. EST10 is over six years old and Roxanne herself has had an amazing career, starting out with a Bachelor of Arts, honing her skills in the recruitment industry and creating value now not just through her companies recruitment activities but as a business owner, employing women and developing women in business. She is a very capable and talented businesswomen and I was delighted that she agreed to be interviewed.
https://www.facebook.com/EST10/?fref=ts
Task Management is a fundamental job role of Executive Assistants. Developing and maintaining a well managed 'to-do' list where it is easy to identify the priority of tasks and the stakeholders involved in their execution is something an indispensable assistant needs to resolve.
In this solo episode Liz discusses the importance of task management, how a notebook and pen will continue to remain an EA's go-to tools and how tools such as Trello (based on the Japanese Kanban board approach) can be a great way to automate your task management to drive accountability, communication and collaboration with stakeholders and team members.
The recent announcement that Atlassian is acquiring Trello is discussed as are a number of alternative tools such as Wunderlist, Asana and Todoist.