superninjaadminAlaskanlady: I don't know how I had missed your post below Liz's. Must have been in too big of a hurry. I appreciate your thoughts. They were very well laid out. While I respect them, of course, that doesn't necessarily mean I'll abide ever totally by them. It's just too much fun to let people know what and who they're dealing with right from the get-go!
I popped back in to add one thing to my message to Liz.
kittie: I have only been intentionally mean to one person in my entire online life, and that was a combination of my wanting retribution for a suffered wrong, my misplaced pride, and my stupidity of playing a no-win game with someone who thrived on them. If you want to make conga lines, you go right ahead. BUT, if you find yourself doing it every Friday and commenting about what a relief it is that it is the weekend, I want you to stop and take a serious look about why. My comments in that case were a generalization, and I used the one thing that is most obvious and handy regarding time management, in my humble opinion.
Liz: while I was driving back from the gym, it occurred (sp?) to me the other way that I read your posting, and why it initially made me a little "tinkled." And, you know me, I just have to let you know about it. Although you have a very eloquent and diplomatic way of phrasing things, I felt as though you were trying to steer me into what you deem as appropriate behavior in a forum that is meant, IMHO, to encourage the discussion of diverse opinions. I grew up in a house where I was *strongly* encouraged to be quiet, and where *anything* even remotely relating to Christianity and (yikes! can I say this online) "Jesus" was laughed right out the door by one member of the family, who has now reformed to a more moderate stance, I might add. I remember when I was very young, watching Oral Roberts announce on national tv that God had told him to build a prayer tower and would give him $5 million to do it. Granted, that was an outrageous thing to say on national t.v., but even at that young age, I admired his guts and I recognized his faith even though I didn't know the word for it at that time. While one of my family members laughed for days and mocked Oral Roberts' bold statement, I pondered it and thought that if God was going to give him $5 million to do something he wanted to do, well then surely this God must surely be worth getting to know a little better. Anyway . . .
This entire DeskDemon adventure, in my understanding, is a place where folks of the admin persuasion can gather and share thoughts. I don't know whether my opinions in this particular post hurt you, specifically, or not, or whether you were just using that for effect. They were not meant to hurt anyone; they were what was on my mind. I requested open discussion and other opinions. I was excited about the prospect of learning other people's opinions and things both deep and shallow, from all over the world. I'm not excited anymore. I'm inspired to do something different now.
I felt as though you were gently encouraging me into a sort of Groupthink, and I never support that, in any way, shape, or form. There's a quote by someone somewhere, about "people with small minds talk about other people, and people with average minds talk about things, and people with great minds talk about ideas." As women, and in the administrative profession *in general*, we have not been encouraged to talk openly about ideas, especially in my Baby Boomer generation. In fact, I could probably rattle off a list of 50 names of administrative people who are scared pea green even to introduce themselves, let alone dare to speak up when they have an idea. Trying to keep this as short as possible, but it seems that if we all stick to the safe topics, we're really not accomplishing much of anything in terms of going ahead. Guys have no problem rattling off their thoughts, and they generally don't knock each other for doing it, unless the idea totally off the wall and, in my experience, even that usually rates a raised eyebrow and a "huh?" When fellow women encourage me to be a good little girl, I strongly resist!!! I am through with being a "good little girl," and although some may view me as a "bad little girl," I can assure each and everyone of you that I have nothing but your best interests at heart. Nothing would thrill me more than for each person on here to find their own voice - - it's in there somewhere - - and to dare to speak up. I have been so inspired by what's resulted here in this particular posting and others that I am in the works launching my own company, a type of search and rescue for admins who are admins because it's never occurred to them that they could be anything else and as an educator for admins who want to remain admins but can't figure out how to get ahead. When I sit back and consider a lot of friends I have who are admins because they didn't think they could be anything else, even though many of them are degreed in things such as psychology, marketing, and even business, it makes me want to cry. They are bright, talented, and highly skilled, and most of them aren't even making $35,000 a year! Some don't even break $30k, and that is a travesty. The times are a changing, as most of us have noticed, and instead of standing and watching as they do, wondering why it's happening to me, I intend to get out there, make things the way I want them to be (with God's amazing help), and take a heckuva lotta people with me. So, honestly, this is my last rant for quite some time, even though I will definitely be lurking in the shadows here and there, from time to time. I have got to add, in closing, that I used to be a member of a certain US organization for admins, back when I was an exec asst, and they kept telling us, 7 years ago, how much things were going to improve for secretaries and administrative people. Well, I just don't see it. It improved for me, a lot, because I had a plan and I worked it like a dog. But, never once, would I give myself total credit for my success. A LOT of people helped me, and, above all, God blessed and approved it all, and that's the only reason it worked out the way it did. Although there are some improvements for the female administrative masses, I see the same old 50 cents on the dollar kind of thing going on. The pay may have gone up a little bit, but look at the skills that a lot of us who have been in the field for years have acquired. They may be recognized, but now it is time for them to be rewarded! And, if not in the admin field, well, then, somewhere else! This situation bugs me a lot, and I'm going to do my little bit in the world to change it, even if I find only one other person in my life who will truly listen to what I have to say and change for the better because of it! Good night and God bless.
