REACH - A Podcast for Executive Assistants

Part One: Learning Executive Coaching Techniques to Become More Effective as an Executive Assistant

In this episode, Executive Leadership Coach, Jonathan Hoyt, shares the strategies and best practices he’s developed to guide executives toward their highest selves and outcomes and achieve meaningful breakthroughs, something you as executive assistants are ultimately working toward as well. You as executive assistants and he as an executive coach and advisor are dealing with the same end-user and have the same fundamental challenge – how to most effectively access an executive’s desires and help them realize their goals. If you’ve ever struggled with how to “get through” to your executive or improve your communication and the way in which your suggestions are received (and let’s be honest, who hasn’t?!), you won’t want to miss this special episode!

How to Break Down Barriers and Find the Common Ground Between You and Your Colleagues

In this episode of REACH, LaChristian Taylor, Executive Assistant at Exabeam, shares her story of how she’s been able to break down barriers and find the common ground between herself and her colleagues/executives in order to allow true collaboration to happen. LaChristian knows what it feels like to be the new kid on the block. As a woman of color who supports at the highest level, she has often found herself to be the only minority in the room. And as an executive assistant who joined a startup coming from a background in politics, she had a lot to adjust to when she transitioned her career to the epicenter of Silicon Valley. We hope that in hearing her story, you’ll feel empowered to break down whatever barrier you’re facing in your career as an Executive Assistant. PS: It may be just as simple as bonding with your co-workers over food and basketball!

How to Take Care of Yourself When Working in a Stressful Environment

In this episode of REACH, Clarivel Barajas speaks about the emotional demands and challenges of the Executive Assistant role and provides tips for how to avoid burnout when working in a demanding role. We hope Clarivel’s raw, relatable, and deeply personal story motivate you to establish healthy boundaries and practice self-care so you can avoid some of the hard lessons Clarivel learned in her career. This episode takes an unexpectedly emotional turn and is well worth the listen!

Chief of Staff Turned Marketing Manager

Starting at Expanse, Curtis Casella served as the Chief of Staff to the Founder and CEO there and was eventually promoted to Event Marketing Manager and ultimately, Senior Event Marketing Manager. In this episode, Curtis shares how his role as an Executive Assistant allowed him to explore and discover opportunities in marketing. From chasing a whim that led him to two, career-defining years in South Africa to angling his EA role toward field marketing, listen in to hear how Curtis has used the EA role as a jumping-off point to explore other pathways. If you’ve ever wondered about career tangents that may be available to you coming from an Executive Assistant role, hearing Curtis’ story may help you imagine some new possibilities for yourself!

How to Set-up and Run an Office of the CEO

In this episode, we hear from Kristen Quint, Director of the Office of the CEO for Anne Wojcicki, CEO of 23andMe. Kristen points out the distinction between what it means to support a CEO versus what it means to oversee the Office of the CEO as well as when it’s necessary to build out a more robust infrastructure to support your CEO effectively. Kristen walks us through the challenges she set out to solve, her thought process, the various organizational models she’s tried along the way and what went into both the planning and execution. Plus, she shares one of the game-changing processes she’s implemented at 23andMe to make decision making that much easier. Listen in to experience the wealth of insight Kristin has amassed over her impressive career.

Temp Glory Story: How One EA Turned a Contract Role into a Career Opportunity

In this episode, Brandon Bailey, Executive Assistant to the SVP of People of Postmates, shares his temp glory story! Prior to joining Postmates, Brandon made the conscious choice to contract for a few years, while doing some simultaneous soul-searching. Through his commitment to adding value and treating every open door as an opportunity, Brandon was able to successfully convert one of his contract positions into a meaningful and lucrative full-time role. In this episode, he shares how he did it. Spoiler alert: it has to do with knowing yourself and staying true to who you are! We hope Brandon’s story will inspire you to view your current temp position differently or encourage you to give temping a shot where you otherwise might not have.

From Ticketfly to Eventbrite: What It’s Like to Go Through an Acquisition (Or Two!)

In this episode, Melissa Silva shares her story of supporting Andrew Dreskin, the CEO of Ticketfly, through two acquisitions! Melissa gives REACH listeners a peek behind the curtain as to what it’s like to support someone through such intense periods of change and how she adjusted from being the sole admin in a scrappy startup to part of a broader admin team at Pandora and later, Eventbrite. If you’re wondering what it’s like to transition from a small startup to an established organization, or how your role might evolve if your company is acquired – or you’re just looking for an excuse to laugh out loud for a half-hour, this episode is for you!

The Role an Executive Assistant Plays in a Crisis

As Executive Assistants, being prepared for any situation, whether it’s a minor crisis like a missed connection or something much harrier, is essential to your craft. We did a podcast swap! In this episode, Jeremy Burrows, Executive Assistant to the CEO of Capacity and host of The Leader Assistant Podcast, discusses the role an Executive Assistant plays in a crisis whether it be a PR crisis, a global pandemic, or whatever else gets tossed your way. Drawing on his years of experience as an Executive Assistant, Jeremy explains how he remains steady in a crisis and how his role has evolved in the midst of recent historical events, as well as his tips for creating a safe space for his executive to vent and ultimately thrive. To hear more of Jeremy and Jessica in conversation, check out Jessica’s interview on Jeremy’s podcast.

Board Relations: The Invaluable Skill Every EA Needs in Their Toolkit

We can’t tell you how many times a client of ours comes to us looking for an Executive Assistant with board relations experience under their belt. In this episode, Danielle Hill, Chief Administrative Officer at Knox Lane, speaks about the value of Board Relations experience when it comes to the Executive Assistant career path and how getting that experience on her resume opened up doors to opportunities she never would have dreamed of. Listen in as Danielle digs into all that goes into coordinating a successful board meeting from preparation, to the day of, to follow-up. So whether you’re an EA who has never worked directly with a Board or planned a Board meeting before, or you’re a seasoned EA who has supported a C-level Executive who serves on multiple Boards and you're here to sharpen up your process, this episode is for you!

Making It: How Jordan Sugar-Carlsgaard Became the EA to the CEO of Airbnb

In this episode, Jordan Sugar-Carlsgaard, Senior Executive Assistant to the Co-Founder and CEO of Airbnb, Brian Chesky, shares her story of “making it.” Jordan walks us through her career path from supporting notable political figures in DC (she was an even an appointee on the Obama Administration!) to landing a job for one of the world’s most recognizable tech brands, Airbnb. Listen in as Jordan discusses the pivotal moments in her career that led her to where she is today. And if you’re an up-and-coming EA striving for a career of this stature, we hope you find value in Jordan’s cut-and-dry advice... “take the risk!”