July, 2008

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Ten Things They Never Taught You in School But you Gotta Know in Order to Survive on the Job

On The Job

Most new parents I know say that can't believe the hospital just let them walk out with their newborn child. The panic sets in as they realize there is no owner's manual to accompany such a momentous event in their lives. The same could be true of the workplace. Sure, some attend years and years of school, but nothing really prepares you for what the workplace is truly like.

Learning 100
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The Future of the Administrative Profession: Where do I Think We Are Headed?

Laughing all the Way to Work

As a secretary I typed letters, answered the phone and did the filing. As an administrative assistant I manage my boss's practice so he can do his job. I draft letters, schedule his time, set reminders for deadlines, bring forward items, make travel arrangements, make some business decisions, arrange conferences, manage client relations and some bookkeeping.

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Prioritization: A Colorful Outlook

Professional Assistant Blog

Home About Me Advertise Prioritization: A Colorful Outlook By The Professional Assistant on Thursday, July 24, 2008 Filed Under: MS-Outlook , Organize , Prioritize , Productivity D o you receive quite a bit of e-mail in your Inbox each day, but have trouble prioritizing them? Do you feel overwhelmed with trying to figure out who you should respond to first?

2008 100
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Educating the Virtual Assistant Marketplace

Denise Aday

I had a wonderful phone conversation with a prospective client today. Unfortunately, even though we seemed such a good fit otherwise, I may not be able to work with him due to an after hours access issue. As an entrepreneur, I often work many – and odd – hours. As a small business owner and service provider to a number of clients however, I have set office hours M-F.

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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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What You Can Learn from a Turkey Buzzard About Striking Out on Your Own

On The Job

I often describe my job these days as being a turkey buzzard. This is not something I am proud of. Well, maybe. A little bit. That's because at a time when journalists are being laid off by the hundreds and the freelance writing market sometimes resembles a sweatshop operation, I have managed to survive. How? I've learned to take what others might term "road kill" and turn it into a pretty decent meal.

Learning 100

More Trending

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Watch Out for That Wrinkle -- It May be a Career Killer

On The Job

Recently, a friend told me about a party she attended called "Botox or Bangs." For those of you unaware of this trend (as I was), it means that when you get of a "certain age" you can either cut bangs to hide the wrinkles in your forehead, or you can get Botox to freeze your forehead so it doesn't move for months and it looks unlined. My friend opted for the bangs -- and the Botox.

Payroll 100
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Office Lingo: Learning the language of a new office

Laughing all the Way to Work

I am starting a new job tomorrow and with every new job there comes the new words, phrases and the dreaded acronyms. We get used to some things and start referring to them by our pet names. We don't even notice it, because we all know what we are talking about – except of course the new person. When they are on the scene you start to realize your office talk is not as easy to understand as you thought.

Learning 100
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A Teacher's Final Words to All of Us

On The Job

Note: I wrote this post last September, and wanted to re-post it as a tribute to Randy Pausch, whose death was just announced. For those of you who haven’t seen Randy Pausch’s final lecture to his students at Carnegie Mellon University, I urge you to take some time and watch it. In the lecture, Pausch , who is dying of pancreatic cancer at age 46, speaks of all the things he wanted to do in his life, and all the things he has managed to accomplish.

Skills 100
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Are we in the budget?

Laughing all the Way to Work

A good question to ask your office manager or HR person would be, “Is there a budget for the administrative staff?” Here are some things that I have often wondered about, but was always afraid to ask: Is there a budget for education for the administrative staff? Some organizations have this in the employee benefit package. At some places I've worked I was able to take work-related courses up to $500 a year as part of my work benefits.

Budget 100
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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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How to Know When It's Time to Take Your Job Off Life Support

On The Job

You can't exactly put your finger on it, but somehow your job has started sucking the life force out of you. Every day you feel a little more depressed , a little more like maybe you should just call in sick and sit home and watch "Cash Cab." Still, the thought of looking for another job is even more depressing. There's the business of writing the resume.

Resume 100
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Having a good working reputation

Laughing all the Way to Work

Some people say it is who you know that gets you the job. Networking and knowing lots of people is a good thing, but I think the reason some people know so many people and have good connections is because they have a good reputation and people think highly of them. The two work together. Having a good working reputation is important. You will be the first person that comes to mind when an employer is looking to fill a position.

Phones 100
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Outlook Rules That Rule

Professional Assistant Blog

Home About Me Advertise Outlook Rules That Rule By The Professional Assistant on Tuesday, July 22, 2008 Filed Under: MS-Outlook , Organize , Prioritize , Productivity E ditor’s note: This is a guest post by Patricia Robb of Laughing All The Way to Work: A Survival Blog for Todays Administrative Assistant. I have finally taken the time to create rules for my Inbox.

2008 100
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Going Over the Boss's Head: Like Swimming With Sharks While a T-bone is Strapped to Your Butt

On The Job

Before I get into discussing the issue of whether you can -- or should -- go over your boss's head, I'd like to share a little story with you. Once upon a time there was a young woman named Letitia Hood. Because her hair was a vibrant auburn color, and she was a bit vertically challenged, she was known in her office as Little Red Riding Hood -- or "Red" for short.

Cubicle 143
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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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Outlook Rules that Rule: Start to take control of your Inbox instead of it controlling you

Laughing all the Way to Work

I have finally taken the time to create rules for my Inbox. It was getting out of control. I knew the rules option existed, but I never took the time to check it out. What I discovered is a time saver and e-mail management tool that is a best-kept secret. Sometimes taking the time is the biggest hurdle, but this one is well worth the effort. I have written previously that to manage my work e-mail better I asked friends and family to send e-mails to my home rather than work.

2007 100
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Ten Rules Guaranteed to Cause You Less Stress

On The Job

It's Friday. TGIF, right? You've put in some long hours, dedicated yourself to the job and figured out a way to whittle your lunch tab down to $1.25 (ketchup put into hot water makes tomato soup, right?). I know you're stressed. That's why I'm here to tell you that it's really OK if you: 1. See that when you're the only one getting on the elevator with the top boss you suddenly say: "Oops!

Stress 100
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Admins in the Spotlight: Assistant walking 60 miles to raise money for a cure for breast cancer

Laughing all the Way to Work

Marsha Johnson will be walking in a 3-day event in Tampa, Florida in October 2008 to raise money for a cure for breast cancer in memory of her friend, Cindy Craig, who died of breast cancer. She is going to walk 20 miles each day for a total of 60 miles. If you are interested in reading about it or sponsoring her, click here. All the best Marsha! Tags: professional assistant Marsha Johnson kudos Administrative Assistant.

2008 100
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The Crazy Days of Summer

Laughing all the Way to Work

Does this sound familiar? I find as an AA that my day is not mine to control. My boss e-mails me or phones me to do this or that so I have to pay attention to the pings that let me know I have another message in my Inbox. I need to check my voicemail when I see the red light is flashing on my phone. An AA does not have as much say about planning their day.

Phones 100
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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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Five Reasons No One Wants to Listen to You at Work

On The Job

While we spend a lot of time these days using electronic communication, we can never forget the importance of that face-to-face communication that is so critical to our success. People make a snap judgement about you the minute you meet them. They check out what you're wearing, how your hair looks, if you smell good (or at least, not bad) and then they wait for you to open your mouth.

Cubicle 100
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Seminars for Professional Assistants

Professional Assistant Blog

Home About Me Advertise Seminars for Professional Assistants By The Professional Assistant on Wednesday, July 16, 2008 Filed Under: Networking , Productivity A re you looking to improve your skills and catch up with the latest office trends ? Are you trying to get that raise or promotion that you so well deserve? One of my readers asked me this: I am an Executive Assistant to the CEO/President.

2008 100
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The pronouns you use can reveal a lot about where your head is

Laughing all the Way to Work

One of my co-workers told me that I was already using "we" and "us" when referring to my new employer. I am physically still in my current job, but my mind is already on my new one. How do you keep focussed on your current job when you know you are leaving? Sometimes it has been hard. My mind is already planning the next Board meeting and how I will organize my desk and the filing at the new place.

Filing 100
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What's So Bad About Being No. 2?

On The Job

As Barack Obama and John McCain try and decide who should be their vice-presidential running mate, let's take a look at what's so great about being No. 2. OK. Hmmmm. 1. You're not No. 3. 2. You usually get a good parking spot. 3. See reason No. 1. All right, all kidding aside, is it really so bad to be No. 2? Well, it can be kind of tough to proclaim that you're really proud to be second-in-command in this country.

Learning 100
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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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Is it ever OK to tell someone how much you make?

Laughing all the Way to Work

Someone asked me the other day what my salary was. I was taken aback. Then she proceeded to tell me how much she earned. I was even more surprised at that. What bothered me the most however was learning she was making more than I was for the same job. Years ago we were taught never to reveal our salary. We might be quite happy in our job until we learn someone else is making more money, then we suddenly are not so happy anymore.

Salary 100
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Does anyone know what time it is? Calculating time internationally

Laughing all the Way to Work

Here is a tip that someone from my office gave me for calculating time internationally. I am not a proficient enough blogger to know how to put these images in my post without you having to click to enlarge it, but I am learning. To set your clock to a different time zone in Word 2007, click on the time on your computer in the bottom right-hand of your screen.

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Career Blogging: A new way of marketing yourself

Laughing all the Way to Work

This August will be my one-year anniversary of starting my blog. It is hard to believe it has been a year already. Over 250 articles later and here I am still blogging. What I have learned as a blogger Blogging about your career is an excellent way to present yourself to a potential employer. I would recommend putting your blogspot on your resume under "Accomplishments" with a brief description of what your blog is about.

IAAP 100
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Hitting the Mark on OfficeArrow

Laughing all the Way to Work

I recently found an excellent site for administrative professionals called OfficeArrow. It is written for office professionals, by office professionals and you can tell because the articles are very relevant to what we do every day. I have been browsing the site recently and discovering just how much there is on it. Today I found a section called Templates and Documents.

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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