How to Be More Confident as an Executive Assistant

Do you sometimes struggle with confidence at work? Having confidence in a professional setting, when surrounded by other skilled and knowledgeable professionals, is a common struggle for many executive assistants.

Working on how to be more confident in the workplace is essential to improving your morale and personal production at work. Whether you are a new executive assistant or a seasoned one, you have immense value to bring to the workplace. 

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Let’s take a look at how to build confidence and how this will help your career. 

A Confident Executive Assistant 

Having confidence at work is important in many ways. It helps you to communicate your thoughts and ideas, deal with conflict better, and makes you more open to feedback and help. As an executive assistant, confidence is key.

You are the direct support system for executives. They want to know that you have confidence in your skillset, your knowledge of the business, and how to best support them. 

Here are some great examples of how confident EAs operate:

• Take initiative. When you see something that needs to be done, take action. 

• Don't be afraid to make decisions. Make decisions that align with your company’s goals and don’t be too shy to make them. 

• Be open to constructive criticism and feedback. Don’t let correction keep you from taking action in the future for fear of failure. 

• Ask questions if you don’t understand something. 

• Speak up if you have a good idea or something of value to add to a meeting or project. 

• Be honest with your colleagues, clients, and company leadership. 

These are some of the best attributes of confident executive assistants. Now, let’s take a look at how to build your confidence to get there. 

How to Build Confidence 

There are two important phases of building more confidence as an EA. These often work together and are equally important. Here’s how to build more confidence in the workplace:

Discover What You Bring to the Table 

We are all unique in our own ways and we each have something valuable to contribute. Take some time to consider all of the things that make you who you are. What makes you different from your colleagues? More than that, what makes you special? 

Perhaps you are better at adopting new technology than others in your office. Maybe you are of a different generation and therefore know better about how to connect with a certain clientele. No matter what the area is, there is something that sets you apart from others in your workplace. 

Once you take the time to dive into what makes you unique and valuable, you will begin to build confidence. Then, you will identify where you fit in and can best contribute to your team with ease and assertiveness.

Practice Feeling and Acting More Confident

You don’t need to transform into a new person to begin practicing confidence. Being confident also doesn’t mean you have to be arrogant, combative, or aggressive. However, practicing confidence does require you to take a new approach to some of your routines and habits. 

You can start small. For example, if you are always quiet and don't contribute during meetings, find a time and topic you are knowledgeable about and speak up. If you always have your camera off on virtual meetings because you are too shy for others to see you, start turning it on. 

Try to find ways to engage more with your colleagues and build stronger relationships. Also, show up to meetings a few minutes early to allow time for small talk with your team members. Take your breaks in a common area where you can engage with others and make yourself more known. 

Collaborate with Other Administrative Professionals 

Building confidence is easier when you surround yourself with like-minded and supportive individuals. At ASAP, we have a huge network of 97,000+ admin professionals who support one another and share feedback and advice. Our training resources include courses in leadership and professional development that help executive assistants build confidence and expand their skill sets. Plus, our in-person events provide an opportunity to step out of your comfort zone and start networking with others in your profession. 

Reach out to us today to see how we can best help you expand your skills and become a more competent and capable executive assistant.