What day is it again? Oh yea, Administrative Professionals Day

If you walked around your office today and asked, “What day is it?” The response would undoubtedly be, “It’s Wednesday.” And that is correct, but many may have forgotten that today is also Administrative Professionals’ Day. All those except administrative professionals, of course. We know it as a day to celebrate those who make an impact by assuming managerial-like responsibilities in a work environment that nowadays, require more than just a typing skill and pleasant phone etiquette. Today is a day of recognition, did you get recognized? Some will say, “Yes, there was a beautiful bouquet of flowers sitting on my desk this morning.” “My boss took me to lunch today.”

The true admin celebrates their career every day, not just on April 22 or during the week of, but each and every day. Here 3 ways to have your own daily celebration:

1. Keep track of small victories as well as the big ones. A small victory is something that makes you feel good afterwards. For example, how many times have you caught a mistake before anyone else, especially the boss? How about the time you almost forgot to send the email without an attachment? These are worth celebrating because, although small in nature, you saved yourself and possibility the company public embarrassment. Good job!

2.     2. Reward yourself after completing a task before moving on to the next. I like this one because I am rewarding myself throughout the day. Rewards include: taking a 10-minute stretch break after sitting for hours, which studies show is not healthy by the way; have a piece of chocolate (my favorite), and a good ol’ fashioned internal pep talk “You did a great job!” Which leads to the next point...

3. Give yourself a self-PEP talk. How often do you have an internal conversation with yourself? I call it a “meeting of the mind.” Self-PEP talk builds confidence, rationalizes situations, and are critical. When I “meet with my mind,” I mentally replay the previous situation, think about why the outcome occurred, and how to react if it occurs again. My “meetings” always end on a positive note-ALWAYS! The more meetings you have, the more you are recording notes so that if and when similar situations arise (and they will) you will be ready because you have already analyzed, evaluated, and motivated yourself to be prepared. Now, that's worth celebrating. Time for a reward…

Today, may have been a day specifically designated for celebrating the efforts of those who lighten the burdens of others, but why not continue the celebration tomorrow and the next day, and the next day…

Have a happy administrative professionals day – everyday!