Categories: Jobs & Education; Misc.

Assistant Survival Guide

By HelenaHandbasket
updated 10 days ago

Maybe you just graduated college. Maybe you just moved to the city. You need health insurance and a way to pay your exorbitant rent. The only job you can find to do these things and still have money for food is an office job. Despite your BA and a grad degree and various internships and work experience in your field you are only good enough to answer the phone, make copies and coffee. Sometimes you just have to work for the man. Here is a guide to help you do just that and not loose your mind, or better yet your soul.

You have started your job working for the man...

You quickly find out that there is a lot more work involved that was not discussed in the interview. You have to keep track of your boss at all times (seriously where do they disappear to?), arrange their children’s schedules, and make sure your boss gets to their appointments on time. You have to do this while making sure that the phone never goes to voice mail, supplies never run out and every time someone asks for something you have read their mind and done it already. After babysitting your boss all day you will probably want to get a drink with your fellow assistants. Here are some great places de-brief after work.

Your boss takes advantage of his expense account

It seems like you have to make reservations for breakfast, lunch and dinner every other day. No time to track down the number online or wait on hold while the reservationist checks to see if the time you need is available. Use opentable.com instead. It’s a free online restaurant reservation service. With a few clicks you will find out if they have tables available when you need them and offer alternate times if they don’t. You can have a list of diners to easily make reservations for multiple people. Open Table has a list of cities to choose from in the US as well as international cities so you can also make reservations while they are away on business trips. Best of all every reservation that is used is worth 100-1,000 points. 2,000 points gets you a $20 dining cheque at Open Table restaurants. Start cashing in on your boss’s lunch meetings! You’ve earned it!

Write it down

Keep a log of everything you do, when, why and for whom. That way the next time your boss yells at you across the office that you made the breakfast reservation for the wrong day you have proof that he told you to set it up for that day. If you can’t keep track of everything make sure you keep track of the most important things. I like to use a separate notebook but you can also e-mail yourself, use the task section on your outlook or type it up into a word document or excel spreadsheet. It is also helpful to make note of things you are asked to do that are above and beyond your job description. Like booking your boss’s family vacation. When review time or bonus season comes around you can look through your notes and come up with fabulous reasons why your boss should give you a raise and a nice fat bonus. You deserve it!

GO TO LUNCH!

I know, I know. Easier said than done. If you can get out of the office at least once a week it helps. Pick an off peak time and a friend and eat lunch out of the office. You could also tell them you have errands to run and take a walk if you have already eaten lunch at your desk. It’s important to get out in the sun for a bit when you are stuck indoors without even a window to look out of all day. Here are some good lunch spots in Midtown and the Financial District.

Two Boots Grand Central

109 E 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017

The two boots are the boot of Italy and the boot of Lousiana for a result of spicy Cajun Italian food. They have mostly inventive pizza named after famous movie and TV characters. My favorite is The Earth Mother without cheese. It has a spicy sauce and is loaded with veggies!

PITA Grill Restaurant

69 New Street, New York, NY 10004

The best grilled chicken in the city! They have great pita sandwiches, salads and more. There is a nice mix of vegetarian and meat options. Their carrot tahini dressing is spicy. They also have california hummus with cliantro, jalapeno and lime. It is super spicy and amazing.

Mocca Espresso Lounge

78 Reade St, New York, NY 10007

Mocca has inventive drinks, great music and a fun atmosphere. Forget your troubles with brightly colored cocktails and delicious Mediterranean food. They have 2 for 1 drinks from 4-7 PM for happy hour.

Bamboo 52

344 W 52nd Street, New York, NY 10019

Happy hour EVERY DAY from opening to 9 PM. Half price drinks with some excluded. They also have sushi!

Crocodile Lounge

325 E 14th Street, New York, NY 10003

Free personal pizza when you buy a beer! They have a Woodchuck Cider on tap and skee ball and arcade games in the back.

When possible make someone else do it...

Chances are your boss will have an American Express Platinum card. Platinum cards come with the concierge service which can be a life saver when you have your hands full and your boss decides she/he needs tickets NOW to insert impossible to get theater-sports-concert-event name here. They can also help with shopping and travel. All you have to do is set up the concierge account and have your boss approve you as a user. Sometimes they have the same options and information that you do but it helps to have someone else take care of it while you do the more important work.

Hale & Hearty Soups

49 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036

Great healthy salads and soups with a selection that changes daily. Most soups have the labels VL and/or D to indicate vegetarian, low fat or dairy free.

Just Salad

320 Park Avenue # 2, New York, NY 10022

Delicious salad’s and salad wraps. I don’t know how they make them taste so good but there is normally a line out the door during peak lunch hours. Go late or early to avoid waiting in line. Try the Rosemary Balsamic dressing. It’s the best!