The Power Of The Edge

I started as a secretary doing filing, typing, shorthand, and documentation. Although a beginning, it did give me some very beneficial skills for later in my career. It allowed me to observe bosses, their skills, their weaknesses, their integrity. This allowed me to accumulate a wealth of scenes on what makes or breaks a good supervisor. My secretarial skills gave me the means to take really good notes during meetings, to create documentation that would hold up in a court setting, and supplement my memory in a busy business world.

I will suggest if you don't have basic typing and note taking skills you develop this as soon as possible. It will prove invaluable in the years to come. I was always amazed the number of people who would show up at a meeting with no paper, pen or other note taking devices. At one end of the spectrum, it makes the leader feel you really care about the topic. The other benefits are you have a chance to grasp hold of an idea or comment mentioned, something new, and have to you benefit later.

Taking good notes allows you to be the most informed and educated of attendees. It can prevent loss (through a lapse in memory) of some important documentation. These lapses can cost a favorable verdict for your case, your project, or your personnel issue.

I would generally take a moment to type these notes - I usually used snippets or bullet points. I'd either put in the file for future reference (files are a good thing) or keep current so I could attend to active issues.

I know it takes time to correctly set up files, especially if you are in a business where office duties are performed by you and not an assistant. I know taking notes and transferring to documentation takes time. All workers who say they are "too busy" are only playing the cover my inadequacies game. You are too busy and too important NOT to do these. The amount of time you spend in the beginning is far smaller than the amount of time you loose not having proper notes and documentation. In addition to time lost, you will loose opportunities and the power of the edge. The power of the edge is that small (insignificant to others) bit of knowledge that you have over those too busy to know the advantages of good note taking.

I do not know applicable Bible verses to substantiate this instruction. I will point out had not the authors of the Bible taken the time to substantiate their lives and what they witnessed, we would be in pretty sad shape. The stories, the real life happenings, the life shaping events would have been repeated, changed, lost or simply forgotten. Our lives are small compared to the Holiness of the Bible but it is another lesson we can adapt to our work behavior. When you look at the edge of a sword it covers very little area. A sword, when used correctly, can shape the world. Put your power of the edge to work for you - it can change your world.