June, 2008

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Out of Blog Assistant

Laughing all the Way to Work

I am on vacation this coming week. Why does it always feel like I couldn't work another day when I know my vacation days are just around the corner. I plan to go boating and will stay at my daughter's for a few days. Happy Canada Day to my fellow Canadians and Happy Fourth of July to my American friends! I will be back on the blog on July 7th. Tags: vacation time off professional assistant out of blog assistant holidays Administrative Assistant.

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Don't Kid Yourself: Your Private E-mail May Be Anything But When You're at Work

On The Job

We've heard the warnings time and again: What you write in an e-mail is subject to your employer not only reviewing it -- but firing you if it is believed you violated company policy. But let's get real: While at work, many of us still send our friends e-mails about where to meet for dinner, we still send that dirty joke to our significant other and we still e-mail our children to tell them that their grades are slipping and they better get on the ball.

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Goals ~ Set, Plan, Commit, Stick, Achieve

Denise Aday

photo by Neurofibromatosis – Reggie Bibbs “Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan.” Tom Landry (1924-2000, American football player and beloved coach of the Dallas Cowboys). Tags: achievement goals planning success.

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Can knowing which fork to use help you in your career?

Laughing all the Way to Work

Do people pay attention to our table etiquette when we are entertaining a client, having a lunch interview or when we are at a work function? I think they do and having good form can be a help to your career. I once went to lunch with a co-worker who kept talking while he was eating and the food was literally falling out of his mouth. It was embarassing for me, but he didn't seem to notice.

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SME Relationships: Proven Solutions for Seamless Collaboration and Success

Speaker: Tim Buteyn, President of ThinkingKap Learning Solutions

💢 Do you find yourself stuck in never-ending review cycles? Are you wondering if your Subject Matter Expert actually got that last review request? Are you having trouble trying to decipher impractical or conflicting feedback? 💢 If any of these scenarios sounds familiar, you may benefit from a crash course on managing SME relationships!

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Five Reasons It's a Good Idea to Stay on a Sinking Ship

On The Job

There are always some sure-fire ways that you can tell your company is in trouble. The floors haven't been vaccumed in recent memory because the cleaning crew is now one 80-year-old woman who comes in every other month to dust. You are asked to re-use ovenight envelopes -- and not because the boss cares about the company's carbon footprint. Unknown people are seen going into top brass offices and holding closed-door meetings for hours.

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Someone was having a Bad Day.

Laughing all the Way to Work

Sometimes you think you are having a bad day and then something happens that makes you see it could always be worse. An assistant sent me and other recipients an e-mail proposing a date for a meeting. The first e-mail she sent she put the wrong year. In the next e-mail she sent, she again sent it to all the recipients and corrected the year, but forgot the attachment she said was in the e-mail.

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It's Time to Admit It: Are You Your Own Worst Enemy?

On The Job

OK, time to fess up. It's Monday morning, and the truth is: This week is going to suck big time because you keep doing the same truly, truly stupid things over and over again. How's that for uplifting career advice? Not exactly what you expected, right? But the truth is, you keep shooting yourself in the foot, and you keep blaming other people for it.

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You don't say? Watch what you say at work!

Laughing all the Way to Work

What you say about yourself can give other people an impression that you might not intend. What you mean as a joke, may be taken seriously. I made the mistake of telling someone I had a bad memory. I find now when I forget something or have a momentary lapse it is almost like I get a nodding and a knowing look like, "Hmmm.we know she has a bad memory so therefore.".

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Uh-Oh: You May Not Be Worth What You Thought

On The Job

If you were offered a job you really wanted, would you be willing to accept less money than what you expected? That's the question many people are facing these days, even in those positions that were in such high demand they were supposedly bulletproof. According to a JobFox survey, some median annual salary ranges dropped $10,000, compared to a month ago.

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Elevating the Virtual Interviewing Experience

Sharing your authentic self in a virtual interview can be an unwanted challenge. How do you break through the digital barrier when conducting a virtual interview and share your exceptional self? Think in unconventional ways to elevate the virtual interviewing experience.

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Reading your way into a great career

Laughing all the Way to Work

Read , read, read! There is so much available out there. I have found that I have gained so much knowledge from reading about work. I read professional magazines, books about topics that I want to be educated on, website articles related to my career and the list can go on. Educating yourself doesn't have to cost big bucks or take time away from your family to attend courses.

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The Worst Day of the Year: First Day Back on the Job After Vacation

On The Job

Here's the biggest news flash of the day: The world did not fall apart while I was on vacation. The birds are still singing in the trees, the Earth is still rotating and the weeds in my garden have continued to thrive. I received nearly 200 e-mails in my absence, and dozens of phone messages. None of them were critical. Well, at least to me. (Macy's really, really wants me to shop their online sale, and someone felt it was imperative that I was aware some woman is suing Victoria's Secret because

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Difficult Working Relationships

Laughing all the Way to Work

I have often joked with my co-workers that this world would be an easier place to live in if it weren’t for the people. People can be difficult at times. I can be difficult at times. I heard a speaker say that the way you handle conflict depends on your experiences and I believe that is true. Managing conflict with limited knowledge and skill in that area will most likely not result in success.

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Keeping one step ahead of your Boss

Laughing all the Way to Work

It is always good to try and keep one step ahead of your boss. Here are some ways I have found to do that: Read the mail Read all correspondence and look for action items and due dates and diarize them or bring them to your boss’s attention. If you have access to your boss’s Inbox you should be checking e-mails as well. Check their calendar Familiarize yourself with what your boss has scheduled for the week and beyond.

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Mandatory COVID Vaccination Policy Template

New vaccine mandates and testing policies will affect employers with more than 100 workers. Get Paycor’s free, customizable vaccination policy template to communicate critical details and new requirements to your employees. Get Paycor’s Template today!

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Welcome to your first day on the job.

Laughing all the Way to Work

There is a lot to remember when welcoming new employees. You want to make sure they get a tour of the office and proper introductions are made. You want to show them where the kitchen is and where the washroom is located ( restroom to my American friends). If you are lucky, your new employer will have a time of orientation and training before you actually go to your assigned desk.

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The Cube has Ears.

Laughing all the Way to Work

We all have to make personal calls at work at times, but don’t be surprised if your co-worker knows your plans for the weekend or which of your children might be in trouble. You can’t help but overhear conversations in a cube. Ways to keep it confidential: Send an e-mail instead of using the phone Go outside on your break and use your cell phone Meet someone for lunch to talk My co-worker speaks French when she doesn't want me to understand Try not to be offended if someone happens to hear you.

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Changing font size and superscript/subscript using shortcut keys

Laughing all the Way to Work

It's been awhile since I posted any new tips and I wanted to remedy that: To change font size using Ctrl keys To decrease font size: Highlight the word or section you want to change and press CTRL + SHIFT and use the "less than" key To increase font size: Highlight the word or section you want to change and press CTRL + SHIFT and use the "greater than" key > A quick way to make words and numbers superscript and subscript Superscript: Highlight the word or number and press CTRL and the plus sign

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Stepping on work toes.

Laughing all the Way to Work

I stepped on a woman's toes this morning on the bus. It was her own fault. I was on the inside seat, closest to the window, and instead of getting up to let me by, she just moved over a bit. The bus jerked and stomp, I stepped on her toes. Did she give me a look! Of course I said I was sorry, but she really should have gotten up to let me out. We can step on people's toes at work too.

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Is Training the Right Solution?

Speaker: Tim Buteyn

Let's set the scene: you’ve identified a critical performance gap in your organization and need to close that gap. A colleague suggests training, but you suspect there’s something going on that training can’t address. How can you determine if training is the right solution before you commit your budget and resources to a new training program? In this webinar, you will learn how to determine if training is the right solution using the Behavior Engineering Model.

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Second Chances

Laughing all the Way to Work

I heard some shocking news that someone I previously worked with was fired, and for a good reason. This person made a very bad judgment call and got caught. Is there hope after being fired for cause? I am so thankful for second chances. I suppose if I was perfect and never made a mistake I could be more judgmental and unforgiving, but because I do make mistakes I want to be forgiving of others.

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The Real Decision '08: Should I Work While on Vacation?

On The Job

I got sort of depressed the other day when I tried to remember the last time my husband or I did not put in some work time while on vacation, including our second honeymoon a couple of years ago. It used to be that when you went on vacation, you maybe -- maybe -- called in from the road to make sure the office hadn't burned to the ground while you were gone.

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Happy Retirement to someone who gave me a chance.

Laughing all the Way to Work

When I started looking for a job after taking time off to raise my daughter, I had certain criteria in what I was looking for: · I did not want to work downtown; · I did not want to live downtown; and · I certainly did not want to work for a lawyer. I was a country girl and loved living in the wide open spaces. I wanted to find a job in the suburbs so I didn’t have to drive all the way into town and I was hoping to still live in my small home town.

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Admin in the Spotlight:Is Retirement in the Air?

Laughing all the Way to Work

Here’s a retirement notice for a long-time administrative assistant, Judy Leonard, retiring after 30 years in the same job. Tags: retirement 30 years of service professional assistant long-time service Administrative Assistant.

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Revitalizing Dry Content: A Lesson in Engagement

Speaker: Tim Buteyn, President of ThinkingKap Learning Solutions

We’ve all been there. You’ve been given a pile of dry content and asked to create a compelling eLearning course. You’re determined to create something more engaging than the same old course that learners quickly click through, but how do you take this “boring” content and create something relevant and engaging? Many instructional designers will say, “Boring in means boring out.

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It's Friday. YAAH!

Laughing all the Way to Work

Our local paper posted this fictional story about Miranda the assistant. Sit back, enjoy the flowers and have a read. Photo by Krysta. Tags: Thank goodness it's Friday professional assistant the weekend Administrative Assistant.

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Understanding Why You Really Get Distracted at Work

On The Job

If you feel like you're going to scream the next time someone interrupts you at work, pay attention. The problem may not be them -- but you. That's right. You're the cause of your own distractions. You may be responsible for driving yourself crazy. Let's be real. That candy dish on your desk? A "hello, stop and chat" magnet if ever there was one. Looking up whenever someone walks by (smile optional)-- a sure sign you're willing to shoot the breeze.

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Does Spelling Matter Anymore?

Laughing all the Way to Work

It seems that documents without spelling errors are becoming a thing of the past. I remember when my daughter was in school she brought home an essay with lots of spelling mistakes and being the perfectionist I am, I had to comment on it. She told me that in her school if you wrote an essay in science then you were only marked on the science content, not the spelling.

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Boss Appreciation Day?

Laughing all the Way to Work

Did you know there is something called " Boss Appreciation Day "? I have never heard of it, but apparently it's on October 16th. My sister told me about it and it got me thinking about some qualities that I have appreciated in some of the bosses I have worked for and some other qualities I have wished for. Here are some that I came up with: A boss who is understanding of all we do in a day and appreciates our hard work and let's us know by taking the time to say thank you.

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Brain Fog HQ: Memory Enhancement Techniques for Professional Development

Speaker: Chester Santos – Author, International Keynote Speaker, Executive Coach, Corporate Trainer, Memory Expert, U.S. Memory Champion

In October, scientists discovered that 75% of patients who experienced brain fog had a lower quality of life at work than those who did not. At best, brain fog makes you slower and less efficient. At worst, your performance and cognitive functions are impaired, resulting in memory, management, and task completion problems. In this entertaining and interactive presentation, Chester Santos, "The International Man of Memory," will assist you in developing life-changing skills that will greatly enha