Page 12 of Lying to the Boss

Tage

David keeps complimenting me on how quickly I’m catching on. He seems thoroughly impressed, like everyone else he’s had to train have been monkeys. It’s not rocket science, which I’m sure I could figure out if I put my mind to it. Learning has always come naturally to me, and I haven’t had to pick up a book to study a day in my life. It’s one of the reasons I left—I knew I was worth more than what I was given.

Being an assistant—a good assistant, doesn’t require much. Mostly it takes listening, common sense, and knowing your boss.

My hearing is on point.

My common sense is off the charts. I’m very practical.

Lane Monroe may think he’s unreadable, but he’s a cookie-cutter CEO. And there’s something about me that he likes, which works in my favor. Because if I do slip up, he’ll look past it. But I don’t plan on slipping up. Who the hell would slip up when there is ninety-five thousand dollars plus bonuses on the line? Not me. Nope. Definitely not me.

This isn’t my forever job; I just knew it was something I could get into easily. I’m selling myself short, but for the pay? It would be stupid to let my pride get in the way. This is just the first step of many. I have to start somewhere.

With this job, I can get on my feet and live comfortably here. I already have three apartment viewings lined up, and since I’ve started a job sooner than I expected, I’ll get paid even sooner. Which means if I’m offered an apartment, I don’t have to worry about begging them to wait to be paid. I still have some money lingering in my account that I didn’t want to touch, but if I’m getting a check soon… I feel more comfortable using it.

“Are you sure you’ve never worked in this position before?” David asks again as we go through emails together.

“I’m sure,” I say.

He shakes his head in disbelief as he clicks to open one. “I’ve been here six years, and I’ve never had someone catch on so quickly.”

He’s said that ten times already, but I just smile and thank him. Because that’s what you do.

“So, what would you do with this email?”

It’s an email asking if a meeting scheduled for tomorrow at eleven can be switched to Thursday afternoon.

“First, I’d check Mr. Monroe’s schedule. If it’s clear on Thursday, I’d send back an email with an available time.”

“Not multiple open times?”

“No, it’s easier to just send one so we aren’t going back and forth all day.”

“Good move,” David says. “Okay…” He does exactly what I say, holding the time for the new meeting until it’s verified and then opens another email. “What about this one?”

This one is a request to donate something for a charity event.

“Who typically handles this? I’d assume it goes through marketing?”

“That is correct. You’ll forward it to them. Of course, you’ll get to know everyone’s name as time goes on, but I do update the list of employees every day.”

“Every day?”

“At the end of the day, I add all new employees and remove any who are no longer employed. The list is on a cloud drive, so you can always keep it open in a tab to check. Until you remember everyone, anyway.”

“Does Mr. Monroe go through any of these emails himself?” I question.

“Of course. It will take you some time to figure out what gets sent to him, to learn what he likes to handle himself, but ninety-five percent of them will be your responsibility. If there is something he needs, just flag it and put it into this folder.” He clicks on a folder labeled Monroe. “He’s very hands-on, so you’ll see he isn’t looking at his computer all that often, so even if it’s something he should handle, if it’s urgent, let him know or handle it yourself, if you’re confident in the resolution.”

“Yeah, he said to call him if I need anything.”

“Yes, but we’ve learned it’s easier to text. If he’s on a virtual meeting or a phone call, at least the text is quiet.”

“Makes sense.”

We spend the next thirty minutes going through emails. About halfway, he lets me take over, watching carefully until he’s satisfied that I know what I’m doing. I knew what I was doing from the beginning, but I understand that he needs to make sure I’m competent.

“Now, the most important thing is making sure you’re prepared for meetings. He hasn’t told me how he wants you to be trained for those just yet, but I’m sure it’ll be like everyone else. He likes his assistant to take notes and—”