Experienced PAs have always been a job role that is considered a busy one, but lately, the trend has been for them to be even busier. Thanks to the trend of companies downsizing staff are being asked to take on more responsibility. This isn’t often a big problem, but it does mean that you need to become a master of multitasking if you want to succeed.
Being Organised
As much as you might be organised and multitask, you have to accept that you can’t do everything. There is nothing wrong with having work in progress that still needs to be completed as long as it is on your to-do list and you know where you are with it. Have an end of the day review towards the end of your working day so that you always know exactly where you are up to.
By knowing where you are up to, you should also know what works needs to be done at the start of each day. This gives you the ideal opportunity to browse through and prioritise what needs to be done. When you’re able to delete work that doesn’t need doing and tick off tasks as they are complete, you’ll find that your working day gets much less stressful.
Deadlines
If there is anything that you feel you aren’t going to complete on time, do what you can to reset deadlines. Most people will accept late delivery etc as long as they are kept up to date and their expectations are managed.
You are in charge of your own time, so if there is something that needs doing then don’t be afraid to say no to other tasks until it is done. If someone asks for 5 minutes of your time see if you can talk to them when you have finished so that you don’t get distracted.
You are also in charge of your workload. Be wary of taking on tasks that aren’t part of your job role. We all take on tasks to be helpful and progress in our career but be careful of taking on anything that is too far outside your work remit and will just result in delaying the delivery dates of your own tasks.
Prioritise your workload
You know whether you are a naturally organised person or not. If you’re not then you should make sure that you do what you can to counteract this. You might need to work a little harder to be organised, but with diaries, schedules and reminders set up, it is possible.
You should be aware of your work life taking over your private life. You’re only going to be a good PA if you’re fresh, not tired and enjoying your job. Remember that you do need time away from work and you do need relaxation time, so don’t be afraid to take it.
To find out more about becoming a PA or Executive PA go to our qualifications page.