I’m so excited to publish my first interview and even more excited that it worked out to have my friend Phoenix Normand as my first guest on The Leader Assistant Podcast.
In this episode, Phoenix and I talk about artificial intelligence, being men in a role traditionally occupied by women, what we love about the executive assistant role, what executives can do to get more out of their assistants, and owning our mistakes.
Phoenix has been a C-suite Executive Assistant for 27 years. He’s worked in Banking, Retail, Technology, and most recently, Aerospace. He created his workshop TRIBE U after attending one-too-many expensive, large conferences where he was left feeling uninspired, unchallenged, and with a stack of business cards from EAs he’d likely never see again.
TRIBE U has quickly become one of the top resources for top performing EAs looking for effective education and community with other EAs at the top of the game. I attended TRIBE U in San Francisco and was blown away. I highly recommend you check it out.
Phoenix also published a book! Be sure to connect with him on LinkedIn and grab a copy of his book here.
Note: During our conversation, Phoenix recommends the book Essentialism by Greg McKeown (it is a great book).
LEADERSHIP QUOTE
“People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. . . . The leader works in the open, and the boss in covert. The leader leads, and the boss drives.”
– Theodore Roosevelt
QUOTE FROM ANOTHER ASSISTANT (JEREMY MENTIONED THIS QUOTE IN THE EPISODE)
As for being an Assistant – here’s what I define as being my favorite part.
An Assistant is a person who is behind the scenes leading and supporting the executive team through the good and bad times. They are always upbeat, assertive and know that in the darkness there is always light at the end of the tunnel. They are never afraid to take on new challenges, be adaptable to changes and take initiative to learn new things, since by trial and error is the only way to become even more skilled and talented – or as one states – become educated by experience.
They are not sensitive when it comes to critique and are able to have grace under pressure. Meaning, even if there’s chaos surrounding them, they are the eye of that storm – confident, calm and they see the solutions behind the issues. They are the Jack of All Trades – able to wear many hats and can manage multiple personalities and tasks that transpire from various situations. They nurture, give advice and be diplomatic when needed.
An Assistant is the combination of colleague, partner, teacher, friend, coach and leader.
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