This post is provided by Stansbury Staffing, a women-owned boutique firm committed to providing direct hire, temporary to hire and temporary staffing solutions.  For more information please visit their website at http://www.stansburystaffing.com/.

If you’ve thought that people skills could not be much of an issue in determining your own success on the job, think again. You could be skating on thin ice when it comes to relating to people and yet be unaware that danger exists.

The ten tips that follow will help you build good working relationships with your associates and at the same time aid you in evaluating what your own assets and vulnerabilities are. Another plus to remember: If you possess the interacting abilities that others lack, you’ll be much better off if layoffs come.

Between You and Me…

1. Try hard to resist the temptation to belittle ideas or correct someone in public. If you think someone’s idea lacks merit, tell the person in private. Otherwise, it’s a putdown. Flaunting one’s knowledge is unprofessional and insensitive—not to mention a quick turnoff.

2. Your body language says a lot about you. But what is it telling? Scowls and frowns, or a defensive stance with hands on hips can spell trouble. Why risk that when a simple adjustment to a positive attitude will keep you from falling out of favor?

3. Cutting people off in mid sentence signals that you have already concluded that what they have to say is not important. If you’re guilty of this fault, you need to practice patience and self-restraint. Ask yourself if you’re a courteous listener.

4. When you don’t share another person’s point of view, can you disagree without being disagreeable? Without flexibility, people skills suffer! Do try to express some merit in someone else’s position before you abruptly dismiss it as wrong.

5. Are you ego-centered–testy to the point where you become hostile if someone criticizes your work? Remember, everyone has strengths and weaknesses. So get over yourself. Try hard to suppress that ego, and readily accept constructive suggestions.

6. Do you sense that people don’t listen to you? It could be you have too much to say. Try a role reversal for a minute and ask yourself this: Would you want to be on the listening end of a one-way conversation? Never! So take a good look at yourself and make sure too much chatter isn’t part of what you see.

7. Become a good communicator. Whether you’re speaking to a large group or one-on-one, use good grammar and learn to think on your feet. Articulate clearly and concisely. Shun complex sentences and remember that a good communicator need not use “big” words–orally or written.

8. Win with teamwork! Commit to becoming a part of the team. Contribute ideas and believe in what you have to offer. Respect your team members. Give each of them credit and foster a spirit of cooperation instead of competition. 

9. Give a smile to get a smile. Warm up to people; be friendly. Ask yourself if your co-workers readily approach you. If they don’t, you need to be more outgoing.

10. Invite others’ opinions. Some of the best ideas are yet to be expressed. So ask others what they think. Avoid being a know-it-all and give your associates the opportunity to enlighten you with their thoughts.

The Choice is Yours…

It’s no secret successful companies seek highly-skilled, self-motivated workers with strong interpersonal skills and communication abilities. Yet most people spend more time doing preventative maintenance on their automobiles than they do on their people skills. Don’t you make that mistake.

Consider this: A simple refresher course is most likely all you need to bring your people skills up to snuff–and once you do that, everything gets better!

 

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This post was written by Patricia Robb, author of Laughing All The Way To Work: A Survival Guide For Today’s Administrative Assistant. For more great tips please visit her website at www.secretaryhelpline.blogspot.com.

ADMIN BUDDIES

I like to have someone at work that I can buddy with. It works well when it is a co-worker who sits closest to you, but depending on how your office is set up that might not be possible. If it is a planned time off then you can meet with your buddy and give them any instructions or information they will need to handle in your absence and any contact names and numbers. I like to have a contact card with my buddy’s general information in it such as logins and passwords as appropriate.

When the time off is unplanned it is more critical to have this information available with easy access. A friend found this out when her co-worker was called away for a family emergency. She had to set up an away voicemail message and fortunately had kept a script of what her away message usually said. She worked for a doctor so it was important that the proper referral numbers were given.

If you have remote access it is easy to do these things yourself from off site, but sometimes you just can’t and it is nice to know you can call your buddy and they can take care of it for you. Last week I was sick and could barely get up to call into the office, so it was nice that my buddy could take care of it.

It is also amazing how much we pick up from our co-workers during the day.

You hear something while walking down the hall or are copied on an email and know something about the purpose of a meeting coming up. This inside information comes in handy when you need to pinch hit for them when they are away. Many times I am so thankful I had that quick chat or read that email that I was copied on as that was the exact information I needed when they were away.

Yes, it is always nice to have a work buddy. If you don’t have that in your office, why not suggest it to the other assistants? Having a buddy can take some of the stress off and give you assurance that you have someone you can depend on. It can also improve team work and general office dynamics.

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This post was written by Patricia Robb, author of Laughing All The Way To Work: A Survival Guide For Today’s Administrative Assistant. For more great tips please visit her website at www.secretaryhelpline.blogspot.com.

 Are you prepared?  

I take the bus to work and I often see people getting on a busy bus and then going through their backpack or purse looking for their bus tickets and holding up the line.  I always shake my head when I see that because I think they should have had that ready before they boarded.  They had enough time as they saw the bus approaching, they know they will need it, but time and time again, they are searching for it. 

I like to be prepared and I find life just works better for me at home, work and even on the bus, when I am organized and ready for whatever is coming up.  We really are creatures of habit and I find if I just keep doing it the same way each time, it becomes easier to be prepared.  For instance, I always keep my bus tickets in the front section of my purse so when I am boarding the bus I just reach in and take one out.  I don’t have to think about where they are because they are always in the same place.  I find the same thing at work.  I organize my desk so everything is within easy reach and makes sense to the way I like to work.  Even when I change jobs, the first thing I do is organize my desk so at least that is familiar. 

I just recently organized a Board meeting and it was nice to have everything where I needed it when I was in the meeting.  I didn’t have to look far for it so that makes me more relaxed and able to do what I am there to do — take the minutes.

I also like to know my stuff and not have any surprises.  Every time I use a bus ticket, I keep a mental inventory so I know when I need to buy some more and don’t show up at the bus stop one morning and Oops! no tickets.  The night before I go to a Board meeting, I review all my templates, agendas, binder, attendance sheets and everything I am going to need or might need.  Do I have everything?  This is where a checklist really comes in handy.  Each meeting has some differences, but usually the basics are the same so your checklist can be pre-populated with those things so you can re-use it for each meeting.  I find the best time to think about what I need is when I have a nice quiet time to do that.  Of course that usually doesn’t happen at work so I take about an hour of my home time, but it is well worth it the next day.

Being prepared doesn’t have to be hectic, but can just be a good habit you get into.  Now, I don’t even think about it, I just know what is in my folder because I organize it the same way each time.  Yep, makes my life much easier.

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If you’re like me, and millions of administrative assistants in the world, you’re probably finding yourself in a very vulnerable predicament. Your company may be scheduled to conduct another wave of layoffs. You question your skills as the flood of qualified candidates hit the discriminating job market. You’re staring at the foreboding cloud of the unknown wondering how you’re going to survive this storm.

How do you stay positive and productive during these times? How do you keep yourself from being overwhelmed by the increasing unemployment numbers being splattered across your tv and computer screens? How do you conquer these fears?

Here’s ONE thing you can do TODAY to take control of your destiny and create your own SECURITY.

Think of the skills you have that may help you earn extra money. What are you good at? What do you like to do? What do you have fun doing? What do your colleagues ask your help for? If you’re stuck, ask your family, friends or colleagues.

EVERYONE’S good at SOMETHIING!

Take an inventory of the skills you have and start drafting ideas on how to market them and earn some extra cash. In the simple act of taking an inventory of your assets and plotting an action plan, you’ll find that your worries and stress have been reduced immensely. Worry and stress find a way of dissolving when you’re absorbed in action. You’ll be cool headed enough to plan your own job security.

I’ll discuss how to take your ideas and turn it into something real on the next blog…in the meantime…

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When is it appropriate to use a colon in your letters? The easy answer is – in your business letters! If you’re writing to a business, follow their names with a colon. If you’re writing a personal letter, use a comma.

 Business Letter:     Dear Mary Santos:

  Personal Letter:     Dear Mary Santos,

If you’re writing a letter addressed to no one in particular, use this format:

To Whom It May Concern:

This is a great and simple tip for creating error bars in your spreadsheet. We provided both step-by-step instructions you can download as well as screen shots of each step.

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HOW TO PUT IN ERROR BARS IN EXCEL

1. Click to select the chart.

2. Click on “Chart Tools” tab.

3. Click on “Layout” tab.

4. Select “Error Bars” button.

5. Click on “Error Bars with Standard Error”.

DOWNLOAD THE STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS HERE: 

 How To Put In Error Bars In Excel (PDF)

Remember that your job is to make your boss look good.

You have to use every advantage you can find to communicate your manager’s professionalism, experience and importance. Business letters are not an exception to this rule.

The most common way people undermine their manager’s status is by abbreviating their titles in a letter. Abbreviating someone’s title makes the position look informal and obliterates the weight of its importance and level of responsibility.

Give them their due credit. Write out their full title.

 WRONG WAY:

Joseph Smith, Asst. Mgr.

 RIGHT WAY:

Joseph Smith, Assistant Manager

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Just like Word, you can track changes on your PowerPoint presentations. Use this tip if multiple people are editing your slideshow.

As always, let us know if there are things you need help with. You can receive these updates automatically through email by clicking below:

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HOW TO SHOW MARKUPS AND REVIEW COMMENTS IN POWERPOINT

1. Follow the following steps to Show markup and review comments in PowerPoint 2007.
2. Click on “Review” tab.
3. In the Comments group, click “Show Markup”.
4. To move between comments use the Previous and Next buttons appears in the Comments group.
5. To hide the comments, repeat step 3.

DOWNLOAD THE STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS HERE:

How to Show Markup And Review Comments (PDF)

If you have a video in your PowerPoint presentation, program it to start a few seconds after the slide’s opened. This gives you the opportunity to prepare your audience about the video they’re about to view. You can also time your video to start at a time your audience least expects. This tip is a great way to make your presentation stand out. 

As always, let us know if there are things you need help with. You can receive these updates automatically through email by clicking below:

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HOW TO DELAY THE START OF A MOVIE

How To Delay The Start Of A Movie (PDF)