Administrative Assistant's Update

JULY 2013 A few new gurus (say that three times fast) FRO M THE EDITOR Joyce Grant Please help me welcome to AAU new columnists Fred Kniggendorf and Freeda Villavarayan. They join our truly exceptional line-up of experts and I'm honoured that they have agreed to write for us. FRED KNIGGENDORF Fred Kniggendorf, PhD, is a warm and engaging speaker. I first met him at an admin conference and was drawn to him right away. I covered his workshops for AAU and found they were so Administrative Assistant's UPDATE Administrative Assistant's Update is published once a month by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. EDITORIAL OFFICE v joycegrant@sympatico.ca S (416) 656-7796 U Joyce Grant, Editor Administrative Assistant's Update Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. 1 Corporate Plaza, 2075 Kennedy Road Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 CUSTOMER SERVICE S (416) 609-3800 (800) 387-5164 T FAX (416) 298-5082 (877) 750-9041 v carswell.customerrelations@ thomsonreuters.com Contents copyright. All rights reserved. © 2013 Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. Contents may not be reproduced without written permission. Brief extracts may be made with due acknowledgement. Annual subscription: $189. Publications Mail Registration No. 40065782 GST# 897176350 information-rich, there were plenty of excellent and practical ideas I could pass along to readers. I was impressed with Fred's friendly sense of humour and the depth of his insight. He's got some great advice for admins and he writes it in a way that's highly entertaining. FREEDA VILLAVARAYAN Freeda Villavarayan is an administrative professional I've known for many years. I persuaded her to find time in her busy schedule to write for us. She has a wonderful, calm and holistic approach to work and life in general. She is a practitioner of "mindfulness," which you may recall she wrote about last month. She talked about the value of working "mindfully." I asked her if she would follow that article up with one that talks about how to be more mindful. Being "in the moment" is a goal many of us are working towards but it can be very difficult to do. In this month's column, Freeda shares her tips on how to be more mindful. These are resources you're not going to find anywhere else. An admin who specializes in mindfulness, helping us all apply it to our jobs. And a senior consultant who can help us with work issues by seeing both sides of the table—that of the admin and the manager. Thank you, Fred and Freeda (I can't believe I have just now put together how similar their first names are) for joining the AAU team. We look forward to benefitting from your excellent advice. And speaking of similar words— try saying our headline three times fast: A few new gurus; a few new gurus; a few new gurus. HELEN LATIMER Helen Latimer also recently joined us as a columnist. I worked with Helen when we were both in marketing for a cable company (I won't say how long ago). She possesses an astute business mind and is also very likeable, getting along with pretty much everyone in the office. She has since become a career coach and has written a business book called The Plan (with John McKee). Helen has a ton of experience in business working with administrative assistants. Her advice is smart, practical and immediately applicable. Our line-up of experts Our three newest columnists join a stellar line-up that includes longtime contributors such as •technology guru Jim Spellos; •working relationships columnist Rhonda Scharf; •grammar columnist George Pearson; •meetings expert Eli Mina; and •communications guru Helen Wilkie. Each of them is highly credentialed, with vast experience in their field. I chat with them on a regular basis, discussing ideas for columns as well as what they're up to in other aspects of their working lives. I feel humbled and so proud to have these experts writing for AAU, providing our readers with their exceptional advice. 2 2013 July AAU.indd 2 13-06-12 9:26 AM

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