“Be yourself at all times, with all people, in all situations…it is the most empowering thing you can do” – Libby Moore shares insights and advice in this exclusive Q&A ahead of her Keynote at office* 2016.
How did you get started as an EA?
I moved to New York City in 1991 with the dream to be a comedy writer for Saturday Night Live. About a month after I arrived I surprisingly got a job as personal assistant to Maury Povich, a well known American TV personality, who had just launched his own talk show the previous year. I say, ‘surprisingly’ because I had no experience as an assistant, and had failed typing in college (yes, failed!).
Maury and I had a nice connection when we first met, and he really took a chance on me. It worked out great, and I stayed for three years. He was fun to work with, very supportive, and I learned so much. Little did I know that this was laying the groundwork for my future job with Oprah. So I credit Maury Povich for launching my PA/EA career.
Who or what has been the biggest influence on your career?
Wow. This is a tough question, because there are so many people and so many things that have had a big influence on my career. It’s really difficult to narrow it down. I would have to say that the power of BELIEF is my #1.
I have always believed in a higher power. Whether you believe it’s inside of you or outside of you… it’s there. I don’t care what you call ‘it,’ my personal belief is that we are all talking about the same thing. When I am not ‘blocking it’, and I open myself up to that Life Force… magic happens, and it has lead me to EXTRAORDINARY jobs, experiences, and people.
There is a treasure trove of people who have guided me along the way for so many years, especially my close friends, family, and partners. They cheered me on when I was up, and reminded me who I was when I was down. That is invaluable.
As far as the single person who had the biggest influence on my career, it is Oprah. Working by her side for 11 years was an extraordinary experience on so many levels. I absorbed over a decade of invaluable knowledge and wisdom from her, as well as from some of the most influential business, political, and thought leaders of our time that passed through her world.
That exposure was the ‘Harvard’ of education in business, life, and human nature. That entire experience feels like being launched out of a rocket ship and into a universe of limitless possibilities.
What do you love most about your work?
What I loved then was the people, and what I love now is the people.
In my private coaching, talks, mentoring… it’s always about that connection with people that gives me energy, inspiration, and joy. Connecting heart-to-heart, having real conversations, and inspiring each other.
What has been your biggest challenge in your career?
Whenever I have allowed limiting beliefs to creep into my head and take over. I am a lot better at managing them now, and turning them into ‘fuel’ for forward momentum, as opposed to ‘weights’ holding me back. I would say that this is the #1 obstacle that most human beings struggle with.
How important are PAs/EAs in the modern business world?
They are essential, and I believe they are the new rock stars of the business world. More and more CEOs are finally ‘getting’ how valuable the CEO/assistant partnership is.
Assistants have a lot of intel and insight into the company that a CEO would never know about because they are too high up the ladder. Smart CEOs ‘lean into’ their EAs/PAs.
Treating your Assistant as someone who only handles administrative tasks is so old paradigm. New paradigm leaders get the value of having a rock star assistant and how that positively affects the bottom line of the company.
There is an excellent podcast about this exact topic on: www.betheultimateassistant.com. It’s a podcast interview by Bonnie Low-Kramen and Vickie Sokol Evans with leadership expert Simon Sinek and his assistant Monique Helstrom. I was listening in my car with a huge smile on my face. This guy gets it!
Do they sometimes get overlooked?
Yes they do get overlooked sometimes for many different reasons.
First of all, not every assistant is a great assistant. So if this is a temporary gig, or something you are doing until you get a promotion out of there, you’ll need to shine in other areas to get noticed.
There is the executive who just doesn’t get how valuable a resource an assistant can be. They are still in an ‘old school’ mind-set: “they answer phones, file, and make coffee.” Sad but true. So be all that you can be, and if they don’t get it, take the initiative and move on.
If you’re shrinking in your role, that is on you, not them. Think of it as an opportunity to rise up and show your value.
What can they do if they’re not being appreciated?
I like to say, ‘be yourself, at all times, with all people, in all situations.’ At times that is really hard to do. I am still working on this in my own life. Yes, it is difficult at times, and yet it is the most empowering thing you can do.
One of two things happens when you are self-empowered: your employer responds favourably, is impressed with what you’ve got, appreciates you even more, and eventually promotes you. Yay!
Or, they are threatened by your power and you get ignored, or maybe even fired. If you get fired, I can assure you that there is a BETTER job opportunity waiting around the corner for you. Yay!
I see this all of the time in my coaching work, and it really is an exercise in SELF RESPECT.
After 11 years working with Oprah Winfrey you started your own successful business as a certified life/career coach. Were you nervous?
Yes and no.
Yes, I was nervous because almost everyone I knew thought I was crazy to leave. So there was a tremendous amount of anxiety being projected onto me by the fear of others. Even though I loved my job, I was burnt out and fried. I had no real ‘plan’ except to take a year to do what I called “The Libby Moore Gypsy Tour, 365 days of following my heart.” There was no ‘map’, just a free-fall into the unknown.
And at the same time – no, I was not nervous because even though there was a part of me that wanted to stay, there was something in my gut, my heart, my intuition saying “you need to go out and share all of this experience and knowledge in a different form.” So that felt very exciting to me. The unknown had possibilities in it too that I was not aware of yet. I trusted that, and went for it.
To this day, four years later, I am still building ‘what I’m doing next.’ Yes, coaching, speaking, advising… but keeping the realm of ‘possibilities’ open is what I find super exciting.
Having said all of that ‘fabulous’ stuff, I still get nervous sometimes, but it passes much quicker. I know how to manage it. It’s pretty much comes down to a choice. We are all energy, and you attract what you put out there… so it is YOUR choice to choose which path to head down. Rattled with fear of the unknown, OR excited with possibilities in the unknown. I call it the ‘fork in the road’ moment.
Finally, what advice would you give PAs/EAs who want to take their career up a notch?
Be yourself at all times, with all people, in all situations. It’s time to let your light shine!
The next edition of office* will take place at ExCeL London, on 11-12 May 2016. To register for your FREE ticket, visit here.
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