So we are all curious…what the heck do you do?!? A secretary and an assistant, hmmm – whoo hoo! You go girl! We think that you gotta be a lawyer in a rocking law firm, I think that it also could be sales or marketing . Maybe running a medium size business? It’s gotta be something that you have to dress up for and have working lunches at nice restaurants. It seems like a lifetime ago that I thought I’d have a secretary and an assistant, but it turns out that I’m not well suited for any of the jobs that I listed above. I tend to be a quieter worker, I like to do behind-the-scenes work and I hate meetings and convincing people of anything, that they should adopt my plan, accept my offer, invest in my company, or listen to a plea bargain. I love work which a lot of people disdain – it has taken me a long time to admit that because many, many people have taken my school aptitude and translated it into potential which I’m always trying to live up to (go to law school!) and I think in order for me to be happy, I just have to realize that those high-visibility jobs are just not for me. I’m such the little worker bee. I love being part of a collective hive and doing my little part competently. I love to find hidden bugs in programming code, to be part of a team of engineers fixing a manufacturing problem together, to have a charismatic leader to follow – I’m great at follow-though, not so good at initiation. Right now, I’m not even so good at finding paid work, but I intend to go back someday, dammit.
So secret pal, did we get anywhere close to what you do for a living? Or are we totally in left field?
Teehee!
I am the Chief Financial Officer for an investment firm. I am a CPA, and my background includes brokerage firm, hedge fund, and proprietary trading accounting work. It is a pretty cushy job, and I don’t have to dress up (thankfully!). My assistant is our bookkeeper and I share my secretary with my boss! My husband has his own proprietary trading firm, so I do the same work both at work and at home.
I find myself being the Shell Answer lady sometimes, and adore that my assistant and secretary are worker bees like you have described yourself. It makes my job a LOT easier. Don’t sell yourself short, I bet all your old bosses loved you!
SP8
One can think what kinds of work are more interesting, rewarding, self-satisfying and, above all, easier. One can sit there and think about it until drop dead. And I think that there are no definitely answers still.
I found out that there are no easier jobs out there. No matter what, you always have bosses, schedules, always short of money, lack of time, undermanned, over committed by higher-ups and lack of almost all important ingredients. I also found out, under any circumstance especially for those above, by doing ones best and see the results coming out, good or bad, is fairly rewarding. Not only that, one can learn something out of it which in turns has better understanding of life itself, its mutual relationship, preciousness and purpose.
Everyone has 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 52 weeks a year. It is a constraint. In order to do what ones want, the more people working together the better. On the other hand, with more people, there bound to be more conflicts amony themselves. How to channel those dragging forces into something that eventually benefit all involved is an art form that is paramount of any successful endeavor.
Just by thinking without getting feet wet is like a Castle-in-the-Air which needs lot of ground work.
Dear Anonymous,
Doris sounds a bit more like you than she is willing to admit. First of all she actually says “TEEHEE”. She is unbelievably smart. She and her husband being the little engineers would talk about things that made my head absolutely spin. She is also beyod generous. Kind, selfless and compassionate are the words I would use to describe her. Thought I’d better spill the beans because Doris is very humble and never brags on herself so I will do it for her.
Aw, shucks… (shuffling my feet).
Doris, I’ve never met you in person, but I know that Sherah is right. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to be a follower more than a leader. Sometimes I think I’m not as abmitious (career-wise) as people think I ought to be, given my grades in school and my brains. But there are so many ways to use your talents, and not everyone wants to be (or can be) president (goodness knows I don’t!). I’m just glad I got to meet you through SP6. You rock!