From the course: Administrative Professional Tips

Setting expectations and maintaining boundaries

From the course: Administrative Professional Tips

Setting expectations and maintaining boundaries

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- As administrative support professionals, we are pulled in several different directions throughout our day. Competing priorities are abound and emergency situations can often become the norm. How do we keep everything balanced with those who we work for, work with, and our tasks to serve? One of the ways we can attempt to do this is by setting expectations and maintaining boundaries. It's not always easy to do this, but it's certainly is worth the effort. There are several ways that I have worked to set expectations and maintain boundaries throughout my career. One of the more recent things I have started to do is to truly be out of the office when I am on my own personal time. This time includes before and after my workday is done, and when I am on vacation or taking care of personal business. I previously had a bad habit of checking emails and voicemails when I was supposed to be off. This became a habit which was then expected by others. That did not allow me to have the downtime that I needed to refuel and to spend with my family. So I made a deliberate decision to totally devote my time off to myself. My boss respects this as well, and rarely tries to contact me when I am out of the office. Also express your feelings if you're becoming overwhelmed by requests, deliverables, and interruptions. When I have a high priority item that needs to be attended to, but I am being consistently asked to do other things, I spend some time with my boss. I tell her about the current situation and get her feedback on the best way to reach my goals. It becomes a negotiation meeting where we can talk out the priorities and see what things can be shifted. When constant interruptions are the culprit, she has allowed me to close the office door, or work out of a conference room in order to get high priority items completed. This has made my work so much more manageable. I have also learned how to not be such a perfectionist. I understand now that things will not always work out as we plan. So instead of trying to attain perfection, I instead strive for excellence. I do the best job I can possibly do, and then I let it go. If I end up making a mistake, I remind myself that I am only human and sometimes I may make an error. It's okay. No one expects me to be perfect. Setting expectations and boundaries is a gift you can give to yourself and can benefit all those you come in contact with throughout your day. By putting these practices into place, you will notice a difference in your workday and in your personal life as well.

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