I Get It!

Managers make changes to calendars because they think, we the Admins, are bored!  Why else would they change a 20 person meeting with less than 2 hours notice that involves 3 executives and other busy people.   We need the adrenaline rush that comes with the reschedule.

NOT!

Really? Aside from death, dismemberment and illness, there are very few excuses that justify the reschedule of a meeting with such short notice.

Being the professional I am, I slap a smile on my face and perform miracles.

Hanging by a Thread

I'm hanging by a thread of sanity.  My status of miracle worker is being severely tested.

Miracles, people!  I perform Miracles!  I don't create the impossible.  I don't make things appear out of nothing.  I don't create matter out of nothing.

Contrary to Popular Opinion ...

Contrary to popular opinion I am not a miracle worker, a maid or a butler, a childcare provider, a janitor, a dictionary or encyclopedia, an ATM, or whatever else the pointy-hair boss can think of.  I often produce what is perceived as miracles, however it is simply know how to do my job well.
I can not properly set-up meetings, this includes conference rooms, call-in numbers, and invite attendees, without ALL the information.  Just FYI, ESP does not come naturally in the role of Administrative Assistant.

Unless it is specifically spelled out in my job description/ contract, I am not required to pick up your dry-cleaning, walk your dogs, or oversee the contractors building your mega-mansion.  This falls in the realm of a personal assistant, and that is a whole different kettle of fish.

Your children are adorable. But if they have to come into the office after school and I have deadlines, please keep them in your office.  My desk is not for childcare or their entertainment.
I hope that this small tutorial can prove to be instructional in the use of an Administrative Assistant.

Kinetic

This week I've given up on juggling and am satisfied with keeping all the balls that I'm responsible for just bouncing.
Everything thing is still in motion, filled with energy.
Ergo, will eventually get done.

Jenga!

Sometimes I liken my job to a fast paced game of Jenga. You know that game that starts out with a tower of wooden blocks, each player strategically removes one, then places it on the top of the tower.  The object of the game is to not let the tower collapse on your turn.

The tower wobbles as you gently pull the block out of the position you have chosen.  If you' re lucky, it is an easy block.  But if your opponents have played the game well, all you have left are blocks that are critical to the the structure of the tower.  Anything you remove with bring the tower crashing down.

The thing is that the inevitable outcome of the game is the collapse of the tower.  And so it is with my job.
So many of my responsibilities and duties often rest on one block, one person.  When that block is removed, everything can come crashing down around my ears.  Does this mean that I've done nothing to shore things up?  Or make contingency plans?  Of course not, I've been planning for these moments so the impact is not as significant.

It always stings when the blocks come tumbling down around my ears.  In the end, I always build a better structure

Need a Miracle? Mighty Admin to the Rescue!

You're no good unless you are a good assistant;

and if you are, you're too good to be an assistant. 

~Martin H. Fischer

One of my directors pokes her head around the wall of my cubicle with a sheepish yet cautious look on her face.  I’m immediately suspicious. 

“What can I do for you?”

“I know this is last minute, but I need a meeting set up with …” And she names three top officers in the corporation, “Can you arrange it for this afternoon or first thing in the morning?”

On the screen in my mind I see myself, strangling this director and banging her head against the wall while chanting, “Lack of planning on your part does NOT constitute an emergency on MINE!”

Reality:  “Of course!”  And I get the details and set about pulling another miracle from my nether regions.