Answering Reader Mail: Employment Lawyers, Attn to Detail, and the Assistant Mindset

“I am an executive assistant. I knew going in that my level of experience was low for what this job typically requires, but my bosses seemed aware of that and willing to allow me a learning curve.

I have been here less than a year, and my responsibilities have increased in some ways. However, I've also been brought in for reviews every three months and told that my attention to detail is lacking. I am not sure how to cultivate this skill or get better at it. They just re-evaluated me after giving me two weeks to improve and are holding up three minor mistakes I made as evidence of a continued problem. They claim that I haven't internalized the "assistant mindset" yet. Any ideas on how to best approach this?

Our HR director has also gotten anonymous complaints of a bad smell coming from me. However, it is inconsistent from day to day and no one can describe what it smells like. No one in my personal life can detect it at all! In good faith, I have spent a lot of money to remedy the problem, but I feel like I am being harassed. Would it be off base to talk to an employment lawyer?”

Answering Reader Mail: Phone Calls and Following Up Tips

"Hello! Could you give us some tips on how to deal with calls? Say when a client follows up something constantly, and you haven't had any instructions from your boss. Should I ask my boss or deal with it myself? Thanks."

Thank you for your question! I hope my answer will shed some light.

Even More Questions Answered

I am writing at another site while blogging here as well. I welcome questions at both places. It usually takes me a couple of days to answer questions, usually a week at the most. :) Thanks for your patience. Hope these answers help you.

More Questions Answered

Here are 3 more questions I answer from fellow readers at the new site. Hope they help you!

Answering Your Questions

I'm writing over at a new site and thought I'd share with you some of the questions I've been answering. Perhaps they will be useful to you as well.

Answering More Reader Mail

I've started writing at another site answering questions related to my career. This week I've answered questions about horrible bosses, career trajectory, and working 24/7. If you ask me a question here or there, be as specific as possible about what you would like to know. Bookmark this page: http://www.jobstr.com/threads/hollywood-executive-assistant