As an assistant, one thing that I have found is that many times you will encounter employers who may not be as professional as you might expect. Early in my career, I encountered an employer who did literally everything wrong – and just plain did not care. It was embarrassing for me, since I had to handle the phone calls from disgruntled clients, and extremely frustrating since I simply could not do anything to control the situation.

As I continued in that job, I noticed that my own behavior was deteriorating. I tended to do as little as possible, feeling that it would not matter whether I kept up a schedule or not since my boss certainly was not going to. I started avoiding calls and trying to call back at times that I thought I would get a voicemail rather than a real person. Since my boss was not very reliable on the phone either, I found that I could actually go for weeks without speaking to him. Finally, I had had enough – and so had my family, who was suffering since I had developed a chronic bad mood and attitude from my toxic work environment (which was my own house!) I had to quit.

I ended up just emailing the guy and telling him that I would be unable to continue working for him. I gave 2 weeks notice, but never heard back so I went ahead and shut my end of things down and just didn’t invoice him for those last two weeks. While I definitely look back on that employer as one of the worst I’ve ever had, what really makes my skin crawl is the effect that his behavior had on mine. I have never in my life behaved so unprofessionally, and I never will again.

Even if your employer is terrible, you must make sure that it does not create problems with your own behavior. I imagine if anyone ever managed to reach him to ask about my performance, he probably would not have anything good to say – and I would deserve that negative feedback. Since then I’ve been more careful in the jobs I take, and I’ve never encountered that type of situation again. If I do, though, I hope I’ll handle it better the second time around. 

We all know that you should hand out business card to help you make connections and network, but did you know that there is specific business card etiquette in many countries that can impact whether forking over your card makes or breaks a future business relationship? In the United States, we throw our cards around, leaving them on chairs and countertops and pulling them out of our pockets and wallets with little regard for their presentation. However, in some countries, this “lack of respect” for ones accomplishments could be viewed as a preview to one’s approach to business in general, and may lead to a swift escort to the door if you do not handle your business cards with the proper etiquette and ceremony.

In Japan, for example, business cards should be given and received with both hands, a bow and an expression of gratitude for the meeting. The cards should not be shoved in a pocket, but rather placed on the table in front of you. Never right on a business card in Japan, and make sure that you have a special holder for the cards you collect.

In the United Kingdom, on the other hand, you can be relaxed with your business cards. While of course they should be clean and unfolded, you can simply hand them over in a regular exchange, then pocket them or put them in your wallet.

If you are in India, make sure to present the card so that the recipient would find it possible to read the text as the card is handed over. Always include your degrees and titles on your business card when networking in India and hand them over using the right hand, but it is not necessary to translate the cards into Hindi.

In China, always give your potential partner your card before requesting theirs. You may wish to translate your card into Chinese dialect. Like Japan, Chinese etiquette requires the card be presented with both hands and an expression of gratitude for the meeting and the cards should not be put away immediately or written on.

I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have racked up “bonus points” with my employer by knowing – and conveying in an email or in his travel itinerary – some basic business card etiquette for travel abroad. It can make or break a deal in many cases. 

As an administrator, you will often be in charge of organizing groups of people in order to get things done at work. Even if you are not actually the official team leader, because you are the one with the calendar and all the phone numbers, you will likely function in a leadership capacity simply because – as you know – you are the one that “knows where everything (and everyone) is.” As a result, it will be up to you in many cases to help keep a team together and motivated even if you are not the acknowledged or appointed leader of the group.

One of the best ways to keep people motivated is to keep them connected, and this is where administrators like you can shine. Particularly if different team members are located in different geographic locations, it can be difficult to create a cohesive, functioning, productive unit. One way to keep people in sync with each other on various parts of the project is to send out periodic updates. These updates should let team members know where the team as a whole stands on various aspects of the project and also will give individuals an opportunity to ask for help, insight or assistance on a facet of the project that may be troubling them.

In addition to the updates, you may wish to provide some online training sessions for team members if they are engaged in distinctly different aspects of the project so that those who are not actually in charge of other facets of the project are at least familiar with the direction that the project is taking as a whole. Finally, consider maintaining a team blog. Of course, this blog should have an administrator – probably you – to prevent it from turning into a forum in which aggravated team members are able to fly off the handle in the event of a bump in the road. However, a blog can be a great way for people to interact and share ideas and for you to share updates, thoughts and insights on the way that the project is going.
By keeping your team in touch, you will find that all members instinctively are more timely, understand what is required of them and are more willing to work together on the project to create a cohesive, productive whole.
 

In today’s economy, many people feel like they have to take what they can get when it comes to employment. However, a truly bad boss can actually permanently damage your work record, depress you and stress you out until it impacts every aspect of your life in a negative manner. When you are interviewing, remember that you are not the only one being evaluated. Here are some characteristics of a “good boss” that can help you determine if the working environment that you will be in is one that will lead to a long, successful and mutually beneficial relationship.

• Consideration for family
  Your boss should acknowledge your home life, rather than assuming you will be available at any time of the day or night at their convenience. This does not mean you will never pull an all-nighter, but your employer should be clear that these cannot be the “norm.”
   
• Backbone
  You will do better at your job if you know that your boss is on your side. This does not always mean that the two of you will agree, but you need a support system that wants you to do well and makes an effort to make your good job performance achievable. If a boss appears to refuse to give locations or contact information or constantly is rescheduling and changing plans so that you cannot manage the office calendar, for example, this can lead to stress and a fair number of headaches on your part as it is likely you will take the fall for this lack of organization.
   
• Encourages continuing education
  This seems like a “no-brainer” since the more you know, the better a VA you will be. However, not all employers see the point. A good boss will want you to learn and grow so that you can do more in your job and also stay motivated and interested in your occupation.
   

When you are considering taking a job, it is completely likely that your boss may not meet all of these qualifications – or that you may not know. This may not mean you decide to turn the job down. However, whenever possible you should look for these characteristics in employers to insure the best working relationship possible.