Annie [00:00:01]:
Hey, welcome to the Whole Assistant Podcast, where assistants come to embrace their badassery and discover how to show up more strategically for their careers, their executives, and most importantly, themselves. I'm your coach, Annie Kroner. Join us as we dive into the skills, strategies, and mindset that will help you unleash your full potential. Let's go. Welcome back to the Whole Assistant Podcast. Today I'll be sharing the 5 pillars of strategic partnership. I'm really surprised I've never talked about this before. These 5 pillars are really core to my thought leadership in our space.
Annie [00:00:38]:
And lately I've really been thinking and dreaming of as to how to get this information into more hands. And I'm really excited to share this with you today. I have taught these 5 pillars as the Leveled Up Assistant program for the last 3 years. I've delivered it live. And I recently launched a digital course that has my training and thought leadership, literally a culmination of 20 years boots on the ground experience, as well as coaching thousands of hours in our space, all distilled down into one potent course that I am just very proud of. And as you may know from earlier podcast episodes this year, it is my goal to help the highest number of support professionals that I can this year. And so I'm really trying to lower the cost to work with me, lowering the barrier of entry in order to get all of these tools in your hands. And I'm just very excited to share these 5 pillars, and then I'm going to share how you can take this work deeper at the end.
Annie [00:01:37]:
But I'm very excited to share this with you today. So the first pillar that I want to share with you guys is really fine-tuning your systems and processes. I am a firm believer that our systems and processes are the foundation of any strategic partnership. It is below the surface. So as you know, foundation in a building is deep. You cannot see the foundation, but when the foundation is weak, the building crumbles. And I love systems so much because systems foster dependability. Dependability fosters trust.
Annie [00:02:10]:
Also with systems, it can have a tendency to reduce mistakes and it can have a tendency to streamline everything for us in terms of our time management. Systems are where it's at. And the way I train on systems, I also incorporate really cool tools that will help you automate. I also incorporate the power of AI. And so I've done all that research for you in terms of the Leveled Up Assistant course. But really developing your systems is where I would have us all start when it comes to our strategic partnership. And I know it's not glamorous. And I know that many of us would rather spend our time on the things that people will see and notice, but I've got to tell you, if you have a finely tuned process for managing all the things, you've got a finely tuned process for managing your inbox, you've got a finely tuned process for managing all the things you do on a consistent basis, it absolutely 100% makes a difference because we really need trust in order to have that strategic partnership in good working order.
Annie [00:03:08]:
The second pillar of strategic partnership is strategic alignment with your executive. So on my website, there is a free download for a strategic planning session guide right on the front page. I will also link to it down in the show notes below, but that can be a power move when it comes to strategically aligning with your executive. And what I really love about holding regular strategic planning sessions with your executive is that it really does bring you guys together, and it really gets your executive thinking about what their priorities are, because oftentimes our executives give equal weight to everything. And so they end up playing whack-a-mole in their brain. They end up running around in frenetic energy because they are not prioritizing the way that they need to be. And so what I love about holding a strategic planning session and why it's such a big flux for us as support professionals is that it gets them to slow down to really articulate what those priorities are. And there's a whole sequence of questions in that guide that I just mentioned that will help you come up with more questions and also take from that list of questions to be able to really drill down with your executive on what their priorities actually are.
Annie [00:04:20]:
And then from there, then we can hold them accountable to those priorities, or when something else comes that we need to shift those priorities around, we can actually have a strategic conversation with them. But until those priorities are outlined, It is going to be a challenge. It's going to be a challenge to do that. I'm definitely a fan of unlocking strategic alignment with your executive. Also, we just need to sit back and observe sometimes. Sometimes our executive may say something is a priority, but what you're actually observing is them spending a lot of time and energy on something else. There again, we can then have a conversation with our leader and ask them, hey, is this actually the priority, or are we just spending a lot of time here because something feels broken or because it's our zone of comforts. So really aligning with your executive will go a long way in helping you know how to prioritize your time and helping you know how to keep your executive on track and how to manage all the incoming requests that they are under, and also helping them manage that pressure.
Annie [00:05:21]:
Because obviously our executives are under a lot of pressure. Most of them are anyway. The third pillar is really boundary setting. And I know this one may seem odd 'cause I think a lot of us think that if we're gonna be a high-level support professional, that we cannot say no or set parameters around our time and energy. When in my career and in the careers of my clients, I have found the opposite to be true. We actually have to set up parameters around our time and energy so that we can allow the actual priorities to get accomplished so that we can actually carve out time for ourselves to actually execute on those high priority tasks and projects that will move the business forward as well as our executive. So really figuring out what we need to say no to in order to make room for yes. There again, strategic alignment with your executive is gonna come into real play here when it comes to our boundaries.
Annie [00:06:20]:
Also, when it comes to your own personal boundaries, aligning them with your values, as they are right now. So values tend to shift and change over time, and I'm a big believer that, especially with my one-on-one clients, we do get clear on their values up front so that I can reference those values as we step through the coaching process and really aligning their careers with those values. And the only way that we are going to actually be successful in setting boundaries is if we are aware of what those values are and we're setting boundaries to allow for us to have the time and energy to put towards those things that are really important to us as humans. And then also in the business to actually execute on those priorities on behalf of our executives and ourselves as well. I know that boundaries can seem challenging. And I think a big fear that we have with boundaries is also coming across as not being a team player. And we just, We don't wanna do that. We wanna be a team player, but we actually have to set those parameters if we are gonna truly level up in our careers.
Annie [00:07:27]:
And take it from me, as someone who was completely unboundaried several years ago before my stroke, boundaries are gonna be very key to you not burning out as well. Obviously my brand is called The Whole Assistant for a reason. I want to see you have a whole fulfilled life as well as a career. And setting healthy boundaries is how we make that happen. Now, I also understand that for some of us, we may set the boundary and our executive may not want that boundary to be in place, right? And that is what I like to refer to as a lack of want match. You don't want the same thing as your executive, or there's a misalignment in terms of expectation. And look, there's going to be misalignments in terms of expectations and the healthiest of relationships. What you have to decide is whether or not that want-match disparity is big enough to start looking for a role elsewhere.
Annie [00:08:21]:
And only you are gonna know that because only you have your set of values and you're living the situation. But I'd really also consider what signs are your body giving you, because our bodies will give us signs. If you are experiencing lots of tension or lots of headaches or lots of flareups, if you've got a particular issue that your body deals with under stress, if you're stress levels are really high, ask yourself, is it because this is a season or is it because this is the reality of the role that I'm in? You may need to do some navigating in terms of shifting your role or even stepping away into a new position. I don't know because I'm not in your position, but these are the common things that I see come up around boundary setting. But actually nailing your boundaries and living into them is a great strategy for leveling up your career, even if you do need to make a shift. The fourth pillar of strategic partnership is developing a mindset for success. I think it's really important that we all uncover the link between our thought processes and success, and nobody else in our space is really talking about this in a very practical way. I'm a firm believer that with just a few subtle shifts, we can level up our mindset and view our roles from a completely different vantage point than we once did.
Annie [00:09:41]:
And part of this is not undervaluing what we bring to the table. Part of this is actually stepping into the fullness of what we have to offer and not discounting or discrediting what it is we bring to the table. I see this very commonly as a coach, and it is this belief that what we do, everybody can do, but that is not at all true. I know I've said this on this podcast before, But I spent the last 7 years of my career supporting high net worth people, and common sense really isn't that common. And even if there are others around with a similar skill set, you're the only one with your unique strengths, with your unique experience, with all the background and history that you bring to the table. And that can either be your superpower or we can downplay it. And I'm a huge believer that we should all be really championing our strengths and leaning into our strengths so that we can really harness the fullness of what we can bring to the table instead of discounting it. The last and final pillar of strategic partnership is time and energy and productivity strategies that will help you move you forward, that will help you allocate your time and energy in the way that will best serve and support you and in a way that will best serve and support your executive.
Annie [00:11:02]:
It's really interesting because I'll be coaching clients one-on-one and I'll just have a day where we're dealing with boundaries, or it's just a boundary day. I'll hop on a call with a client and they'll be dealing with an issue that's revolving around boundaries. I'll hop on a call with the next client, it's around boundaries. It's really fascinating to me. I just walk so many people through the process of nailing these 5 pillars of strategic partnership, both in a one-on-one coaching capacity and then also for the last 3 years in a group capacity that I have really fine-tuned this process. And I know it sounds very simple and it is simple in the ideas, but the actual implementation of it can be more challenging. And if you guys really want to level up, if you really want to offer more value, if you really want to fine-tune your strategic partnership, I highly recommend that you take this course that I've created. And I am very proud of the fact that I am lowering the cost to get this information into the most hands possible.
Annie [00:12:07]:
I think last year I charged $1,500 for people to go through my 16-week program. Since I've turned it into an evergreen course, I am now able to charge $499 for the course. You also get a bonus session on how to negotiate. Where I walk you through the exact same process I've walked my one-on-one clients through and got them significant pay increases or title changes or promotions. So I do think that there is a lot of value here and I'm really excited to offer this at such a low cost comparatively to what I've had in the past. I'm doing this cuz I really want to, there again, get this in the most hands possible. And I also just wanna help as many people as possible this year. That's my goal.
Annie [00:12:51]:
Is to just be absolutely as helpful as possible to the highest number of admin support professionals. So yeah, that's what I have for you guys today. These 5 things: developing your systems and processes, unlocking strategic alignment with your executive, boundary setting, developing a mindset for success, and really honing and fine-tuning your productivity will go a long way in helping you really level up your self-concept and, and really level up your strategic partnership. If you wanna learn more about this course, you can go to wholeassistant.com/levelup. I'm going to pop that in the show notes below, the link in the show notes below. And I hope you found this podcast episode helpful. It was a lot of information squeezed into 15 minutes. Feel free to email me at annie@wholeassistant.com if you have any questions.
Annie [00:13:39]:
I always love to hear from those of you who listen to the podcast, and I'm really excited to get literally 20 years experience and thousands of hours of coaching people. Distilled into one course. I'm really excited to get this course into as many hands as possible. So I hope you find it helpful. There again, if you have any questions, you can email me at annie@wholeassistant.com. And until next time, go embrace your badassery. If today's episode gave you language clarity or just a quiet, "Oh, it's not just me," I am so thrilled you're here. If this podcast has been helpful for you, the easiest way you can support the show is by taking 30 seconds to rate and review it on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Annie [00:14:21]:
This it helps more assistants find this work. And if you're ready for ongoing support, guidance, community, and growth that actually fits into your life, Empowered Seat is where we continue this work together. It's affordable, flexible, and designed for assistants who are done white-knuckling their careers in isolation. You can learn more and join at wholeassistant.com/empoweredseat, or click the link in the show notes below. And until next time, go embrace your badassery.
