by Lorman Education Services
Administrative assistants spend their days juggling a plethora of responsibilities: managing schedules, keeping detailed records, conducting research, and handling every other project that comes their way.
But there are tactics you can implement immediately to help make your busy life as an administrative assistant a little less hectic.
No. 1: Plan your day ahead of time
Make a to-do list for tomorrow at the end of each day. This will help mitigate the amount of time spent in the morning sorting out the day’s top priorities.
If there are tasks you perform daily, be sure to block out time to get them done. For instance, if you usually make phone calls in the morning then add it to your online calendar (that way your coworkers can see you’re busy, too!).
You can even create a priority matrix to help you delegate work and arrange tasks in order of urgency.
Planning your day in advance will help you manage ongoing projects and those that will inevitably pop up throughout the day.
No. 2: Ask for clear priorities and deadlines
Don’t be afraid to ask for clarification or assistance from your boss or your colleagues. You can do this by simply rephrasing the original instruction back to the person to confirm it.
Here is an example of how you can ask for clarification:
Instruction: Can you create a database of our outside vendors?
Confirmation: Sure, I can create a database in Excel of our third-party vendors with their contact information. Is there anything else I should include?
You can use a similar tactic when trying to prioritize projects and verify deadlines. For example:
Instruction: I need you to prepare documents for the next board meeting.
Confirmation: Do you need them today, by the end of this week, or later?
Key Takeaways
As the saying goes: work smarter, not harder. Apply these tips immediately so you can stay productive.
- Plan your day in advance to keep organized and stay ahead of important tasks.
- Always confirm details and deadlines so nothing falls through the cracks.
Lorman Education Services is a leading training partner in the professional development industry. For over 30 years, Lorman has helped ambitious professionals stay current on industry trends, in-demand skills, and earn continuing education credits.
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