Editor's Letters
Issue: November / December 2013
Issue: November / December 2013
Changing Perceptions
By Lucy Brazier OBE - November 27, 2013
Here at Executive Secretary, we are gearing up for a year that could change the world for Assistants. Did you know that 2014 is the International Year of the Secretary and that we have just been appointed as Global Brand Ambassador for this extraordinary event? It’s 30 years since the last one and it couldn’t... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: September / October 2013
Issue: September / October 2013
Back to School
By Lucy Brazier OBE - September 27, 2013
As most of you know, I have spent the majority of my summer working from my balcony in Spain. I didn’t take the Summer off, but I did ensure that for two months, I closed the computer at 5pm every weekday and took weekends off. It was a much needed rest and I have come... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: July / August 2013
Issue: July / August 2013
Changing Lives
By Lucy Brazier OBE - July 27, 2013
Back in the March issue of Executive Secretary, we featured a truly inspiring young Assistant who I met at the BEL Conference in Anaheim in February. Marina Ivey‘s leg had been amputated at the age of 15, following a particularly nasty car accident. Today, two further amputations later and as a single mother of 11-month-old... Read more »
Personal Development
Issue: July / August 2013
Issue: July / August 2013
Bullying at work
By Lucy Brazier OBE - July 23, 2013
We asked you how to combat bullying in the workplace; here are your responses
Editor's Letters
Issue: May / June 2013
Issue: May / June 2013
Never Alone
By Lucy Brazier OBE - May 27, 2013
By the time I am done this year, I will have been to 21 different countries delivering presentations on all things administrative. Sometimes I go to Chair conferences or to speak at them, I have presented at various training days for Associations, at internal and external networking events and even the occasional HR seminar. I... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: March / April 2013
Issue: March / April 2013
Let The Party Commence
By Lucy Brazier OBE - March 23, 2013
Two years ago this week, I was feeling just as stressed as I am now. The reason? We were just about to launch an unproven concept that had taken months of hard work to put into place. I remember vividly, putting the first issue of Executive Secretary to bed at about 3am on the morning... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: November / December 2012
Issue: November / December 2012
Resolutions
By Lucy Brazier OBE - November 27, 2012
New Year is quite possibly the most positive, forward-looking holiday we celebrate. We say goodbye to the past and turn our attention to the good that the coming year promises. Many of us make New Year’s resolutions for positive change, such as quitting smoking, losing weight or pursuing a dream career. New Year’s Day brings... Read more »
Communication
Issue: November / December 2012
Issue: November / December 2012
7 Ways to use Emotional Intelligence at Work
By Lucy Brazier OBE - November 25, 2012
Emotional intelligence is about understanding our emotions (and the emotions of those around us) and learning to manage the way we handle them says Lucy Brazier
Editor's Letters
Issue: September / October 2012
Issue: September / October 2012
Let the Networking Begin
By Lucy Brazier OBE - September 27, 2012
Because it’s the start of the school year and most of us are back at work after a holiday, September often feels like a new beginning – a time to start afresh. September is also traditionally the month where there are more events on the Assistant calendar than any other, and we will be at... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: July / August 2012
Issue: July / August 2012
The Olympic Spirit
By Lucy Brazier OBE - July 27, 2012
In two days’ time on 27th July, the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games will take place here in London – the first city to have hosted the modern Games of three Olympiads. In ancient Greece, wars would stop for the Olympic games. It was not merely a time out for recreation, but rather an... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: May / June 2012
Issue: May / June 2012
Loyalty or stupidity?
By Lucy Brazier OBE - May 27, 2012
As a former employee of News International, I have watched with interest since the phone hacking storm broke last year, and in particular, since Rebecca Brooks became implicated. As a woman in the publishing world, I have followed Ms Brooks as she rose to achieve the ultimate position in one of the biggest publishing companies... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: March / April 2012
Issue: March / April 2012
Birthday Greetings
By Lucy Brazier OBE - March 27, 2012
Back in March 2011 we re-launched Executive Secretary. Prior to this it had been in existence for about 16 years in various guises, but in March, we were reborn. And it really was like a birth, painful, at times uncomfortable and a lot of hard work but well worth the wait in the end. Birthdays... Read more »
Editor's Letters
Issue: January / February 2012
Issue: January / February 2012
An event to remember or a series of unfortunate events?
By Lucy Brazier OBE - January 27, 2012
If there is one part of my job that I have a passionate love:hate relationship with, it is organising events. I love it because it’s a great chance to project manage something exciting and creative. There is a huge sense of satisfaction when the day finally comes and you have pulled it all off with... Read more »
Health & Wellbeing
Issue: January / February 2012
Issue: January / February 2012
Taking Care of the Caretaker (YOU!)
By Lucy Brazier OBE - January 25, 2012
Lucy Brazier lists five simple ways to make sure that you take care of yourself, so that you can continue to take care of others.
Editor's Letters
Issue: November / December 2011
Issue: November / December 2011
Christmas Gifts
By Lucy Brazier OBE - November 27, 2011
Enjoy your rituals and family traditions over the holiday season but come back to work in January with an open mind, full of new ideas and inspiration
Editor's Letters
Issue: September / October 2011
Issue: September / October 2011
The End of Summer
By Lucy Brazier OBE - September 27, 2011
And so here we are, wending our way towards the bittersweet final days of summer. When I was a child, the summer holidays stretched out forever – all now melded into a memory of hot sleepy days spent on beaches, in parks or on picnics. Of course as an adult, the summer holidays are not... Read more »