This is why Executive Assistants are burned out
EAs know what they're getting into when they sign up for this work. The clues are in every job ad and interview "manage competing demands and priorities" and "composure under pressure" or "resilience in a rapidly changing landscape" and "ability to cope in a fast paced environment".
EAs know they're the safety nets, the last stop - whatever mistakes they make or don't catch can have a huge impact.
As an EA it can feel there isn't the same permission to be as human as everyone else.
If EAs find themselves not coping even for a moment it feels like a failure. And someone will always notice.
THIS is why the executive assistant community are stressed, exhausted and burned out.
Here’s why the toughest times provide the best experience
During my 27 ish year career as an EA, most of which supporting at the most senior levels, I experienced some really challenging times.
Mergers, acquisitions, public relations catastrophes, IPOs, changes in leadership, Royal Commissions, House Economics Committee appearances, the GFC, a pandemic, bullying, sexual harassment, unreasonable requests, demanding executives and some lean times with serious cut backs.
I also experienced some really amazing, happy, cruisy times.
Here’s the weird thing. The happy, easy times weren’t the moments in my career that brought me the most growth or opportunities.
Connecting to purpose: the secret sauce
Somewhere on the career hamster wheel of working hard toward the next promotion or pay rise we began sacrificing what we need to fulfil the needs of others. It’s a habit that’s hard to break, particularly for Executive Assistants whose roles exist primarily to support the needs of others, to support the success of others.
If left unchecked this is a detrimental way to exist and it bleeds out beyond the working week into life itself. I talk a lot about the dark side of EA work because it isn’t shared openly enough. It’s a dirty little secret and burden many feel they have to carry alone.
I was a senior EA for over 27 years, I know this first hand from personal experience and through conversations in the community throughout my entire career and now in this business.