Leadership Tips for Administrators

I am quite new in this Admin gig although I was an Executive Assistant for two years in a call center company. Both positions are very important in any company and as facilitator Boris Joaquin puts it, Administrators and Executive Assistants are those who "lead without the titles".

I'm doing this blog because when I started out as an Admin last February 2010, I know the job description but wasn't sure what is really expected of me. Hopefully, this blog will help shed some light and give encouragement to the great Admins in many offices.

Here are some of the things I learned as an Administrator and hopefully, you'll find these useful:

• Read leadership books such as John Maxwell's books. The principles you will learn on leadership books will be applicable whether you are part of the top management or middle management. John Maxwell's Maximize Your Day helped me a lot as it summarizes his leadership tips.
• Earn your colleagues' trust and respect before you lead them. Know what makes them tickle. Show that you are sincerely concerned with them. Spend time with them. Befriend them but maintain your "space" as an authority figure.
• Be a servant leader but don't do everything for your staff. Show them that you are not too "big" a person that you will not help them in completing their work. Extend your hand just don't let yourself end up doing the task for them.
• Create a positive energy. Greet your staff in the morning and greet them with a heartfelt smile. You can also try applying John Maxwell's 30-second rule. John said, "when you make contact with people, instead of focusing on yourself, search for ways to make them look good". 
• Be consistent in doing follow-through. It might be exhausting to always do follow up on action points but learn to accept that it is part of your job.
• Be a role model. You might not notice it but your staff looks up to you on how you do your job, how you present yourself at work and how you spend your time at the office; so, practice what you preach. If you want them to be better employees, be one.
• Practice one minute management. As the One Minute Manager authors Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson put it, to do one-minute praising, "...praise people immediately, tell people what they did right specifically and tell people how good you feel about what they did right..." 
• When dealing with multi-racial staff, study their culture and background and deal with them according to their level. This is applicable especially when you're the "foreigner" in the office. You will need to work twice as hard to earn their trust and respect. But don't fret. Once they see that you have nothing against them and once they notice that you are sincerely concerned with them and the growth of the company, they will respect you eventually.
• Cry if you must but do it somewhere private. I hate confrontations. Well, who doesn't? I usually find myself shaking or in the verge of crying when confronted especially by a loud and verbally violent person. But try to keep the same calm energy no matter how difficult it is. Let the "attacker" talk while he or she is at it because no matter what you say, most likely, that person is not ready to listen to you. You might feel that you've lost the battle if you don't retaliate but I've learned long ago that those who retaliate calmly and with well chosen, peace-promoting words win the battle. 

Sooner or later for sure I will share more of my learning and hopefully you will enjoy your own journey as an Administrator because I'm loving mine.