You've Got the Job, Now What?

Be a Kickass Assistant: How to Get from a Grunt Job to a Great Career
by Heather Beckel

Book Description

Turn Your Assistant Job into the Career You Want

Do you spend your time in a cubicle, dreaming of the day you'll have your own assistant instead of being one? Then put down those classifieds and read this book. Heather Beckel draws on her experience in the West Wing to deliver everything an ambitious assistant should know. These strategies guarantee you won't be stuck in that cubicle for long. Get the real-world deal on how to:

• Develop organizational tactics

• Handle-and learn from-mistakes

• Manage difficult bosses and fellow colleagues

• Become a source-and discreet keeper-of confidential information

• Promote yourself to a better job.

Complete with invaluable references on everything from vital travel information on major cities to business letters that get results, BE A KICKASS ASSISTANT is everything you need to know to make your job a cool one-and launch your own kickass career.

Chapter 1

You've Got the Job, Now What?

Goal: To make your boss as efficient as possible. Do everything you can to make the transition from the former assistant to you smooth, with as little disruption to the boss's world as possible.

It's your first day, and of course you're excited, but you're also a little scared. All right, more than a little. Believe me, I've been there.

I became an assistant in the White House with no grace period for learning anything about the place where I was working. I'd been George Stephanopoulos's assistant for over a year on the Clinton/Gore campaign, but suddenly, on Inaugural Day, 1993, we were starting work at the White House. The phones began ringing immediately, and two enormous mailbags of George's fan mail were delivered that first afternoon. George needed his daily schedule, but we quickly discovered that the computer terminals on the desks were useless because their hard drives had been removed. I needed to pee, but didn't know where the bathrooms were, and I was afraid to walk through the halls of the West Wing. I was sure that one of the uniformed guards would stop me. That first day I sat on the edge of the couch in George's office, which had been every previous White House press secretary's office. When George arrived we stood up and turned on the television and had the surreal experience of watching CNN's live shots of the exterior of the West Wing. They showed the exterior of the window where we were standing watching TV, with a reporter saying something like, “Inside the White House the new administration takes office.” I took over the desk outside George's office and looked in the drawers. I found a schedule for President Bush, which was exciting, but I was hoping for something more useful, like Post-it Notes and pencils. I had no idea how to order supplies, nor did I have anyone to ask, as we were all new. Those first days were fraught with tension, not only because of my new job, but also because of the exalted place in which I was working.

About a week after we arrived at the White House, I had to go to the East Wing to run an errand. To get from the West to the East Wing you have to pass through the basement of the residential part of the White House, some rooms of which are on the official public White House tour. About halfway down the main hallway there was a folding screen blocking the width of the hallway. I was sure this was when my fear would be realized; the guard would look at my pass and me and tell me I didn't have clearance to go further. I timidly approached the guard and told him who I was, and my errand, showing him the papers in my hand. He looked at me with incredulity and I prepared myself to be embarrassed and slink back to my desk. The guard explained to me that my pass allowed me to go anywhere in the White House compound (other than the First Family's residence, of course), and that I didn't need to justify my whereabouts to him. I moved around the screen only half believing him, and expecting confrontation from a guard there. But on the other side of the screen was a crowd of tourists dressed in brightly colored leisurewear, in stark contrast to my somber suit and pumps. They stared at me and I at them. I suddenly realized with great clarity that for them, I was part of the tour-a White House staffer-and that the screen was there to keep them out, not to keep me in.

After that I moved around with greater confidence, and slowly began to feel more comfortable in my surroundings. But I can honestly say that as I arrived to work at the White House every morning, I was always amazed to be there. You might not work in an office guarded by armed Secret Service agents and tourists visiting regularly, but when you begin your new job, expect to be overwhelmed and intimidated. You need to compensate for this by being prepared.

Copyright © 2002 by Heather Beckel

About the Author

HEATHER BECKEL was the executive and personal assistant to George Stephanopoulos during the Clinton 1992 campaign and during the president's first term in office. She owns a restaurant in Connecticut and currently works in public relations for a luxury bath company.