Stay tuned in to free professional advice
A podcast can turn a morning commute into a chance to work on your professional goals. And it’s completely free. Here are some of the best for administrative professionals.
Category: Productivity
Tell a tale to sell your ideas
As many companies cut back on expenses and, in some instances, cut staff, how do you maintain your edge and ask for what your department needs without immediately seeing your request denied? Tell a tale, become a storyteller and see your words make an impact.
Make decisions like Sully
We can learn a lot about good decision-making by noting how Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger behaved after he realized that both engines on US Airways Flight 1549 had cut out.
Summer get-togethers for every budget
While you may not have been partying much at the office lately, some employers see summer as an ideal time for an all-staff get-together. Instead of spending a lot on flowers and glassware rentals, though, they’re getting creative with summertime themes. Here are ideas that assistants posted on the Admin Pro Forum.
Solving life’s little gadget problems
Like McGyver, you probably have a trick or two that you deploy when you don’t have the exact items you need for the job. Maintain your reputation as “the one who always finds a solution, no matter what,” by using these low-tech solutions for common gadget problems:
1-Minute Strategies: May ’09
Boost productivity by “plotting” the items on your to-do list … Organize a boss’s overflowing e-mail box by setting up inbox folders … Manage team conflict with this tactic … Take a breather every hour, for peak productivity …
Stop interruptions: 4 gatekeeper moves
More than half of senior executives say they’re interrupted about once every 30 minutes, according to a Center for Creative Leadership survey. Here’s where assistants can play a vital role. Stave off interruptions by partnering with your boss, using these tactics.
Increased workload? Stay organized
Layoffs, shortened workweeks, stressed-out workplaces … it all can lead to another byproduct of the recession: increasing workloads and work slippage. How are administrative professionals ensuring that, with stakes soaring higher than ever, no work falls through the cracks?
Boss a perfectionist?
The perfectionist boss can easily drive you crazy, spending time correcting others’ less-than-perfect work and agreeing to take on any and all projects. Some workaround tips for you:
How to make better decisions
When making decisions, pay attention to the factors that lead people to make bad ones: relying on past experience, making prejudgments that turn out to be wrong and being swayed by attachments to people, places or things.