Professional Development

There are times when we talk to ourselves critically. Perhaps we just think it, or perhaps we voice it out loud. “I’ll never get this right.” “I’m such an idiot.”

Phrases like this are a sure sign that emotional hijacking is at work. If we become aware that this is going on, however, we can challenge the thought rather than become a helpless victim to it. Challenging allows us to better control our emotions. The emotions are sure to be giving us some message, but the real message is more than likely to be obscured by emotional hijacking and so we risk misinterpreting what is actually going on.

After months of determination your hard work has paid off, and you have now qualified as a Legal Secretary. Some of you may wish to further your qualifications and strive for a career as a Paralegal or even as a Solicitor or Barrister. Whilst others are satisfied that they have an excellent qualification to be proud of, does this mean it is the end of developing your knowledge and skills?

We all carry around a fair amount of emotional baggage – things which have annoyed or worried us, whether they are to do with work, home or our social life. These things can create emotional clutter in the mind unless we develop healthy ways to clear them out so we can concentrate better on what is good for us.

Words are only a very small part of communication.  While you are saying the words, your body may well be saying something else.  Or even if you don’t say anything, your body language will still have said it for you!  So here are the top ten tips to help you get your message across in the way you intend:

The typical work life of Legal Secretaries or Legal PAs, especially those working with top executives, is very challenging, time constraining and full of trying relationships often resulting from conflicts of interest.  Universally, it is believed that ineffective communication, unhealthy competition, personality clashes, conflicting interests, jealousy, time constraints and unclarified assumptions are the major causes of conflict.  Oftentimes, when conflict is not well managed, our emotions are negatively affected, as it leads to confusion, frustration and demotivation.  Conversely, where it is constructive and properly managed, it becomes a healthy tool for achieving greater performance, creativity and higher productivity.

Spring is a great time to see the process of renewal in the natural world and is a great time to take stock of our lives – what is working well for us, what is not working so well and seeing what changes we can make or influence.

We often spend a lot of time on automatic pilot: busy getting things done as well as thinking about what needs to be done next, as well as experiencing distractions of one sort or another. We often feel that there is little time to spare outside everything that is going on. However, there might just be spaces which we haven’t fully recognised or put to best use and perhaps we can also create some new spaces in order to build in time for something which nourishes us – this might simply be some peace or quiet.

Do you need to stretch yourself more in terms of development?  Do you wish you could achieve more?  Do you sometimes feel stuck in a rut?  Set yourself some personal objectives to achieve.  To help you achieve them, here are the top ten tips, including the SMART model:

Paying attention is the window to all of our experiences every day of our lives. Where and how we place our focus of attention (or where and how we allow other things to grab our attention) determine the quality of our lives, and our relationships with ourselves, others and what the world has to offer. What we know of ourselves, how we feel physically and emotionally, and our ability to make informed choices are all influenced by both how we focus attention and the quality of that attention.

Spring is in the air, and many people start to think about spring cleaning their homes at this time of year. But what about our lives? We can bring positive energy into our lives by eradicating negative areas and old habits.

Much like your home, your mind gets cluttered and needs care. It can get overloaded with old attitudes, old emotions and old memories, and it needs a good clean out of the stuff that you have collected and are holding on to out of habit or neglect. If you let these things go and free up some room for a positive mindset and new, exciting challenges, you can gain a flexible, simple and happier lifestyle.

In December I gave you tips on how to prepare to take minutes at a meeting. This month we will focus on how to take the notes at a meeting, whether it is a formal meeting with an agenda or an informal team meeting. So, after you have prepared, here are the top ten tips to help you take notes at meetings: