How To: Be Essential in the Workplace
Photo Courtesy of Lilly Tyson
Lilly Tyson, a Coordinator of Features Development at Blumhouse Productions is no stranger to offices that need to function efficiently. Below she shared her tips on how to do this in a way that makes you instrumental to an office, all without sacrificing quality and friendliness.
Invite Opportunities: Be the person who says yes to opportunities. Never fear being the person who is indispensable, if that makes sense. My first job I got because a PA couldn't show up two weeks earlier, and I said yes. Any opportunity that I was given, I grabbed because I was like, “This is something I'm gonna learn and then they're gonna know they can come to me.” Any time someone called the production office, it was “Is Lilly there?” They knew I would show up constantly. I've been told before, “You don't want to be too good at your job or else you get stuck.” I think that's utter bulls**t. Be really good at your job. Be recognized for it. And if you are ever in a spot where someone isn't moving you up, check in with yourself about it. Be like, “Do I actually think that I can't move up from here? Because if I can't, then it's time to find a lateral move and go somewhere else.”
Be Answer-Ready: Be the person with the answers. If you don't know something, know the person to ask. You can do that by just listening. And if you don't know something, ask, don't pretend. Obviously there's times and places. [If] your boss is running [out the door], don't use that moment [to ask]. Go and find out for yourself. Anytime you are presented with something you don't know the answer to, don't view it as something you don't know and hide it. Admit you don't know it, and then learn it and make that one of your tools.
Listen the First Time: Don't have to be told something twice. When you are told something, really lock it in. When I've been told something twice, I just die inside because I'm like, “I was told this once. That should be enough.”
Be a Friendly Face: I talked to my friend Taylor Berry, Jason’s 1st assistant. She went through CAA, so she has been agency-side. She agreed–a lot of times we’re [told] “Be cutthroat. You have to, to get ahead.” And we’re both like, “Just be kind to people.” You don't have to [always] be sunshine, people have hard days. But being essential is [being] the person people go to because you are at least a little friendly and engaging. I think of how many times I have been put off by an assistant at a different company because they aren't helpful or a little bit friendly or understanding.
Be Trustworthy: Being essential is actually also being the person who they know they can call on. If somebody comes in, [they know] “Lilly's gonna take care of that person. She's gonna make them feel comfortable.” Whether it's a high-level director or a writer coming in for the first time with a script that they're excited about, making sure people feel like they are welcome and we're really interested in them [is important]. [Even] for your coworkers–I like to make sure that people know I'm hearing them. I might be busy, but that's the whole point: you're all trying to make it happen together.