Administrative Professionals: Learn it Before You Need to

Administrative assistants and executive assistants, take heed: Being "adaptable on the job" and "learning as you go on the job" are not the same thing. The first phrase describes a desirable attribute, especially per employers' criteria. That phrase is about adjusting to the conditions you find yourself in.

However, the second phrase is not necessarily a desirable attribute, particularly if you want to be a "top-notch" administrative professional. Read onward to see what I mean...

Do you know what the slang term is for learning as you go on the job?

It's the phrase, "winging it."

Unfortunately while that phrase sounds "cool," it's actually nothing to be proud of.

Dictionary.com defines winging it in this informal sense as "to accomplish or execute something without sufficient preparation or experience."

That's the same thing as learning as you go on the job. Would you put that you're good at "winging it" on your resume?

Probably not, right? And that may sound like a silly question but let's consider how many people might highlight the fact on their resumes or in job interviews that they can learn quickly on the job. While that might be a good thing in certain jobs, it's not necessarily so for an administrative assistant or executive assistant. Much of the things you're expected to do in an administrative professional role, you really should be able to do (at least to some extent) before you accept the job.

For instance, let's take travel skills. Many administrative professionals who want to rise in the ranks see executives asking if they have knowledge and experience in coordinating travel. If the administrative assistant hasn't got this knowledge or much travel coordination experience, he or she still might think: "I can do that. How much harder can it be than what I'm doing now. Besides, I can learn it as I go."

But let's reverse the situation. Say you're that executive and you plan to take an elaborate trip, perhaps overseas, where you need to attend important meetings. Would you like to depend on an executive assistant to accomplish coordinating your trip for you who is "learning as she goes on the job"? Would you be willing to take that chance when you have to be in the right places at the right times to conduct company business or else deals can be lost and so can your job and reputation?

Probably not, right?

So you can see why that executive would want someone knowledgeable and with at least some experience in coordinating travel. So if you want that position and you have the "at least some experience" part, then you also better be brushing up on your travel coordination skills and touting them. You better not just think and say: "Well, I don't know much about coordinating travel, but I'm a quick learner. I can learn as I go on the job and get you where you need to go."

In that case, you might as well just be saying, "I'm good at winging it."

That's just one example of why if you have been winging it as an administrative assistant or executive assistant for one year, five years, 10 years or even more, it's time to stop.

Learn to master your chosen profession through training and professional development.

The best administrative professionals never stop learning.

They proactively seek out learning new things.

Being the best in your job and in your chosen career takes planning and preparation. It takes forethought. Look around you. The truth is that only a very small portion of the millions of administrative professionals globally can even say they are the best at what they do.

And their success secrets aren't about just what they did to be the best. It's also what they did not do. They did not and do not wing it. While they are adaptable in their jobs and roles, they do prepare for each and every step of their career and each task they do on the job as much as possible. They do this through ongoing training and professional development.

Top-notch administrative assistants and executive assistants tell employers about how they have, and they are, prepared to meet new challenges. They don't say that they're always ready to learn on the job and wing it. They talk about achievements in professional development and training.

If you're ready to stop winging it as an administrative professional and take charge of your actions, behavior, job and career, then take the next step right now...

...join the Virtual Association for Administrative Professionals (VAAP) to access self-study learning resources that will help you become the best administrative professional you can be. VAAP is owned and operated by me: Karen Porter, Founder and President of The Effective Admin.

Remember, learn it before you need to. This will give you an edge in your administrative professional career. Your current and potential employers will have an administrative assistant or executive assistant who knows how to do XYZ skill or task and not simply one who is willing to learn it on the job when and if needed. That's reactive, not proactive behavior. You can do better than that.