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Jennifer Webb
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About This Site - Career Skills for Admins Workshop, June 18, 2008
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Handling Those #&%**# Interrupters
May 5, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
OK, it’s been said we lose 1.5 months a year, one hour a day, and it’s lost to people who interrupt us.
Here are some ideas of what you can do about getting some of that time back:
1) Look at your physical space.
- If you’ve candy or other foods on your desk remove them. People gravitate to food and need to linger for a bit of time after they munch.
- Place your chair in such a way that you don’t make eye contact with people who walk by your area. If they don’t make eye contact, they’re much less apt to stop.
- If you’ve a chair in your work area, fill it with stuff. When people sit they stay longer.
- Close your door if you have one, use police tape across your cubicle (or other creative means to signal that you don’t want to be disturbed); look for ways to say “not now.”
2) Watch the signals you give off.
- Do you appear busy? Sometimes (women especially) feel the need to always be nice or available, and that can send a wrong message that you’ve got time to chat or help, when you don’t.
- After talking with someone dismiss them; it’s really not rude, just effective. Simply say “Is there anything else?” then break eye contact, looking down at your work.
- Stand up when someone comes in, give the appearance of being rushed. Tell the interrupter you need to finish your project (if you can, drop someone’s name with more authority…finishing the project for John Smith is even more effective) and tell the person when you’ll get back to him at a specific time.
3) Keep a Work Task Log (WTL).
While many, many people say if they’ve the time to keep a WTL they wouldn’t need it, a simple one, kept for only two weeks, can yield a wealth of information. Who interrupts most often and what are the reasons? This gives you all sorts of information to be more proactive in dealing with the interrupters of the world!
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Multi-tasking: Are you wearing too many hats?
April 18, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
Is multi-tasking a skill we really want to improve upon? In a two-day seminar I recently taught the administrative professionals in the class spent a lot of time debating the pros and cons of multi-tasking. For instance, while participants said they were overworked and had to be five places at the same time or get cloned, they unanimously talked about the need to be more centered, taking the time to relax, focus and smell the roses (or flower of choice). Seems when we end up on too much of a treadmill we accomplish what needs accomplishing, but we gulp down our days and weeks so absent-mindedly that we can’t even tell you the last time we relaxed or read a novel or had a non-stressed lunch.
Let’s look at multi-tasking from a slightly more centered approach. It’s crucial to balance our priorities at work, and we often wear lots of hats in the process. But it’s also a good idea to program ourselves to fit in some quiet time somewhere, somehow. It’s amazing how much more effective (and efficient) we are when we allow a little recess in the middle of all the activities. Probably our first grade teachers knew what they were doing when they let us go play in the morning and afternoon, not to mention the benefits of milk and cookie breaks now and then. By the way I know how difficult it is to actually take a break in the middle of the day, probably feels impossible. But anything else you thought was important enough you have managed to create in your day, so this too could be accomplishied.
So what are some smart ways to multi-task, stay focused and not work 18 to 20-hour days in the process? Here’s a short list:
Get others involved. This may not seem logical if you work alone, or never have the opportunity to delegate in your department. BUT, look a little deeper. In fact anytime you’re looking for additional solutions, go five “why’s” deep to see if you can uncover additional answers. Obvious ideas are…if you get stuck buying or changing toner in the copy machine, can you set up a system with other administrative professionals? If you spend a great deal of time making travel arrangements, is there an agency to use or can you swap some tasks with others to keep you from being interrupted so often while you make your bosses’ travel plans?
Maybe getting others involved means getting one good multi-tasking idea from everyone you know. In accelerated learning the mantra is to look outside your area of expertise for additional answers. What does a teacher do to multi-task better? A CEO? A waitress? A fireman? You might be amazed at their collective answers.
Don’t duplicate tasks. Print out what tasks you’re working on and make sure your boss/bosses are on the same page. When you’re focusing on one area and your boss is heading a different direction, it wastes valuable time. Remember we know this already, but we get so busy trying to stay on top of things that we often assume we’re on the same page as our bosses, and it can be a big mistake!
Check out various software programs. Outlook, for instance, can help you get a better perspective on your priorities. Ask others, find out what they use and recommend.
Use visuals. Sometimes a chart can help you get a clearer idea of the order of tasks, especially if you’re juggling several projects. With a flow chart, for instance, you map out the order of sequences in a task. With a mind map you get to randomly list all steps in a project, and then reassign them in their order of importance. Check out the various programs for Mac and PC’s that offer this service.
Make lists. I saved this for last because we all know we need to list our priorities in order of importance. And even though we know the importance of creating a prioritization list, it’s a good idea to remind ourselves of how practical it is. This same list should be shared with all bosses, and if you work with non-communicative people, the list should be checked against their priorities at least twice a day, more often if necessary. Depending on the need and time, you can break your list down by daily or weekly tasks, by ABC categories or any other system that helps keep you focused on the projects.
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Working with Multiple Bosses…
April 9, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
Negotiating with multiple bosses is a losing cause because it’s always necessary to let them choose priorities among themselves.
I’ve worked with more people over the years who tried to keep peace with multiple bosses or make decisions on priority projects. Instead of wrestling with the situation, there are much better ways to deal with it.
One way is by creating a project sheet and emailing it to all bosses each morning; check in early afternoon for changes, but let them decide the priorities. It will help you work in a less stressful environment.
Also keep in mind Daniel Goleman, in his work on emotional intelligence, said 25% of our success in life comes from our IQ, 75% from our EQ, or emotional quotient.
So your skills at handling people, and especially your bosses, are crucial in your professional development and success. That means you might approach each boss differently as you suggest your revised plan to be more efficient.
Notice their body languages, help them think the decisions are theirs, and always ask their input. It’s amazing what effective people skills will do.
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Career Skills for Administrative Professionals
April 3, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
Hopefully in the posts on this site you’ve come across some valuable tips and helpful information to make your job that much easier. And be sure to stay tuned because more tips are coming. By applying them, they have the potential turning you into a “Super Admin”…
If you remember, several weeks back I asked for input from readers about their hopes and challenges in their careers. I was really pleased with all the responses, particularly because those who took the time to answer the questions all offered quality feedback. I’m very grateful for that.
Over the next weeks I’ll be sharing some of what people had to say and offering suggestions that will help you move past obstacles to having a more satisfying career.
One of the questions asked was about the quickest and most effective way for you to really get and understand practical information. Far and away the favorite choice is by attending live workshops.
So in response to that feedback, I’ll be offering a one-day workshop this coming June 18th in Reno called “Career Skills for Administrative Professionals.” You can read more about this workshop here:
http://www.tipsforadmins.com/CareerSkillsForAdministrativeProfessionals.html
The first place I’m announcing this is here on the blog. I will be mailing my main mailing list as well as advertising it shortly.
I’m planning on this being a super high-quality workshop. To insure this, I’ll be strictly limiting the number of people who can attend. I anticipate a strong response, so I recommend you reserve your place as soon as possible by clicking this link:
http://www.tipsforadmins.com/CareerSkillsForAdministrativeProfessionals.html
I look forward to meeting you in person you there!
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Are You Reacting Like This…?
April 1, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
I once knew a CEO who would completely lose it if something crucial happened. As soon as this happened his executive assistant would lose it, and together they wasted a lot of time being flustered and upset. After he regained his composure, she would come back around as well.
Does that happen to you? If so, I’d like you to see what happens at those times if you do the following exercise:
At these times, imagine a pause button. Then, if someone starts to react this way to a crisis see yourself pushing your silent pause button and waiting three seconds before you react. Or see yourself watching the situation from a black and white TV, without emotion.
Sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it? But even though it sounds easy, it’s still very powerful.
This exercise is an example of the fact that different perspectives help keep out negative emotions therefore increasing our ability to find rational solutions. We can save so much time over the course of the day by choosing to keep others’ reactions from impacting us. We do have choices!
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
4 Quick Tips for Putting Off Procrastination
March 27, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
If you find your task list getting too full, it’s easy to put off doing important tasks. Here are 4 quick ways to make sure you get things done.
1. Take Action. Here the best approach might be to break it into sections, perhaps only 10 minutes at first. You can go back to it later, but it’s often getting started that’s the hardest part. Perhaps it’s overwhelming, and it needs to be broken into manageable parts.
- Number the tasks
- Do the task as fast as possible
- Get a co-worker to do the project with you
- Play music
- Reward yourself after completion
And, if you just can’t bear to start the project, ask yourself why not and really listen to your answer.
2. Delegate, and if you don’t have the option right now, try bartering with someone else to help if he or she has more time than you. In delegating it’s been said we need to inspect what we expect from the individual we’re delegating to (make sure we’re giving the right person the job), document, set up a time to get together to discuss the progress, let the person do it their way. General George Patton said don’t tell people what to do, tell them what needs to be done and then stand back and watch their ingenuity. Finally, anticipate what could go wrong and be prepared.
3. Let it go. There are times we start a project and then realize it wasn’t the best choice in the world, but we’re already committed. Don’t throw good time after bad, have the courage to drop it when you see it isn’t the most productive or effective way to go.
4. Put it off. We all know we’re wired differently. A morning person might prefer to do detail work at 7:30 am because that’s when she’s most alert and therefore most effective. Other people can’t function well until 11:00 am or three cups of coffee, whichever comes first. If you see you’re wasting a lot of time doing a project in the afternoon, when you’ll be quicker and sharper in the morning, delay it. Ultimately you’ll save both time and the possibility of making mistakes.
Better managing time and priorities always makes you more effective and more valuable in your career.
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Managing Chaos
March 24, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
It’s undoubtedly true that if you worked in a vacuum, managing chaos wouldn’t be an issue. I’m guessing you can manage time pretty well and have a handle on priorities, deadlines and all the other skills necessary to do what you do. Even so, you don’t exist in a vacuum, and there are many variables that get in your way when it comes to really managing all the chaos that goes along with your career.
Also, administrative professionals often think they should be able to take care of everyone’s needs. Yet just as budgeting money is important (unless you’re independently wealthy and working as a hobby), budgeting time is equally important. You can’t do everything.
Maybe you get things done but your desk is a mess, or you always get the monthly sales statement out on time but to do so you have to stay late and have no social life. A good rule of thumb is to leave the office at the office, and learn to pick the work back up the next day. Managing the chaos in your career is not necessarily easy, but as with most things we can create smarter habits over time.
Look to see where you have control and where you don’t. So often we beat ourselves up, assuming that if we were only a little more disciplined or worked longer hours we really could get everything accomplished. Dream on! Many of the things impacting your time have nothing to do with your abilities whatsoever.
For instance, look at the possibility that the problem could be equipment, other people or processes. If you are doing your best to create a report, but the software program keeps messing up, can you be more effective just by being more disciplined or working harder? Don’t think so. You can work on getting better software, but the problem is with the program, not you.
And if you have to wait two days to get a vital piece of information before you can send out a letter, it’s an employee issue and perhaps a procedural issue as well. Get the point? You needn’t throw up your hands and say it’s all out of your control, but realizing the problems aren’t with you helps redirect attention to where the problems are, and then you can be creative to help resolve the issue.
One more thing… avoid playing the paper chase game. There was a time, a while back, when we thought the computer would shorten the work week to four days. Didn’t happen. We also thought we’d be a paperless society, but from what I see we haven’t thrown any paper out, we’ve just repositioned it. In this technological age a large number of people still have rolodexes. There are, however, certain things you can do to deal with the continued influx of paper:
- File paper vertically, meaning don’t put paper in a “To Do” box to handle later, file it vertically to handle it once.
- Color code files or date file corners for quicker access.
- Rip pages out of magazines for your reading pile (while waiting in lines, holding on the phone, etc.)
- Organize emails by coding the subject line.
- Find the best software programs to help you organize.
- Check phone messages, mail and email at certain times of the day instead of continuously.
- Finally, if at all possible, eliminate your “To Do” box.
Here’s how to do the last item: Hide your “To Do” box behind your desk and replace it with a three-ring binder. When someone (who you don’t work for) casually drops by your office asking you to do something, you can say sure, just sign in. When this person sees he is number 27 on the To do list, he’ll often take his letter to fax or similar project elsewhere!
Yes, chaos is everywhere in your career, but you can get control!
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Being More Visible
March 20, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
We’ve all heard of the proverbial saying that the squeaky wheel gets the oil, and there’s a lot of merit to that when it comes to becoming more visible within your company.
When you attend a conference, take a course or read a relevant article, write a memo on what you’ve learned and send it to your boss. Keep a file of these memos. Find a mentor and ask what areas you should focus on to enhance your career. Ask your boss to attend planning meetings, look for ways to get more involved, read the company’s annual report. You might not notice any differences right away, but by continually letting your boss know what you’ve done and how you’ve focused on the growth of the company, you really will start to see results.
You’ll also make career gains by taking on a greater leadership role at work. The reason is simple, namely that people learn from being led, not told. They watch how we react, how we handle stress, how we deal with emotional issues and how we acknowledge accomplishments.
In looking at how we continue to expand on existing leadership roles or carve out new ones, let’s start with perception.
Look the part. Mind you I’m not talking about the “dress for success mentality” although dressing the part is smart and effective. What I’m referring to is the information that is communicated loudly without ever saying a word.
We’ve talked in the past about the fact that 90% of initial communication is nonverbal: 58% is visual, 38% tonal and 7% based on content. When we are assuming a leadership role our demeanor—posture, tone, hands, and eye contact—either back up or deny what we’re saying.
Look for role models. Maybe it’s a politician (they exude confidence) or celebrity (does Donald Trump ever look less than supremely self confident?) or someone you’ve worked with in the past. The idea is to find people who show their confidence (not their arrogance) in everything they do and them duplicate their behavior, or at least adapt it to your own style.
Know yourself. I didn’t say to dwell on weaknesses or be in denial of something that needs fixing, but do assess where your strengths and weaknesses lie and what steps you should take immediately to continue growing. Get a mentor if possible, and if not at least a person who will give you unbiased feedback as to what areas of your professional life need to be improved upon, and which areas are your strengths.
Help others shine. Absolutely nothing is more important than bringing the best out in others. When your team looks good, so do you. Just as you know the importance of making a boss look good, realize that the more everyone around looks great, the better you’ll look, and the better they’ll feel. Remember recognition should be individualized, specific and deserved.
Again, Tom Rath says in “How Full Is Your Bucket?” that the ratio should be about five to one. Five positive reinforcements for every one negative one. And while we’re on positive reinforcement, helping others shine, don’t forget that most people get more excited about and appreciate more the gifts that are not expected. Send a muffin, a paperback, a single flower, a CD or any and all other ideas for thank you gift. I realize I’ve already mentioned this but most people can count on one hand the time someone really found a way to say thank you. Sometimes we all forget to say thank you, and forget to tell others how great they are, or what a fine job they did.
Get everyone engaged in the vision. There are people with vivid imaginations who can soar on their own, and people who can’t see past the end of their noses. Look at their learning styles, look at what excites them, makes them tick, and find ways to bring them into the vision. Ask for advice, ask for suggestions, and then…
Listen. Most of us forget 70% of what we hear within 24 hours. The corporate world is peopled by lousy listeners. If we are going to lead others we need to know what they think, know and feel. The more we really listen (as if we have to write a memo based on what we have just heard) the more effectively we’ll engage the person who is doing the talking. Listening is one of the most difficult things to do and an immensely valuable tool when we master it.
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Getting the Respect You Deserve… Setting Boundaries, or Saying No!
March 13, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
When you’re working for someone it’s sometimes hard to have control over your work situation. Crises and urgent matters come up constantly. But chasing every little emergency can be counter productive.
That’s why it’s so important to understand the best way to say no, namely by using the “can, can’t and why” model.
For example, if a boss asks you to answer the phone but you’re already on hold for a conference call for her, you could respond by saying, “I can see if Mary can get it. The reason I can’t get it right now is that I’m on hold for the conference call.”
If asked to do a report ASAP you could say, “I can do it in half an hour. I can’t do it until I’ve finished the report for the 9:00 am board meeting you requested.”
Does that make sense? You’re very open, explaining why you can’t do the request this instant.
When do you draw the line? An example would be when working with multiple bosses and they all want information at the same time. In this case let them work it out with each other, that’s the only win/win scenario.
Another example would be when you are already doing something else that’s a priority; when dropping what your’re doing to handle the task at that moment would be counterproductive to the bigger goal you and your boss want to acheive. Which, of course, means explaining to your boss why you need to say no in order to get the current project done effectively.
Saying “no” isn’t rejecting the request. It really means that you can’t do it this minute and there are alternatives you can offer. And don’t forget your body language. Ninety percent of initial communication is nonverbal. Use posture, eye contact and tone to communicate cooperation, conviction, professionalism and concern.
I’ll have some additional ideas for ways to increase your respect at work in an upcoming post. If you haven’t yet, be sure to put your name and email address in the boxes just below my picture at the top of the home page to receive a notification.
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
Thinking Outside the Job Description Box
March 11, 2008
by Jennifer Webb
Hi,
I ran across this link yesterday and thought you’d be interested:
Thinking Outside the Job Description Box
Be sure to scroll down the page to see the actual post.
Best regards,
~ Jennifer
