Have you ever found yourself having to make decisions on your own? Maybe your supervisor has gone away on vacation leaving you in between remaining projects and upcoming events. It’s what happened to me! Though I must say, it wasn’t such a bad thing. Even though my direct supervisor was away, she had left me with access to the tools & materials needed and a document with tasks to accomplish. I was very grateful for that! But what if she had not done that?
I have come across the word ‘initiative’ many times in the working environment, whether it’s during the interview process or during the job itself. What does initiative mean? Well, according to Google and the Oxford dictionary, initiative means having the ability to assess and initiate things independently. So, if my supervisor had decided to not leave anything behind and instead we had a brief meeting, I believe it would be a great initiative to create a document myself for the upcoming projects. This would help me keep organized, keep track of tasks that must be done before a deadline, and have reminders for scheduled posts.
One important task I was in charge of was to post updates every day on social media for upcoming events and campus activities. It was important to keep a calendar (we used Google Excel!) and reminder alerts to be able to post on time. On my way to campus (1.5hr commute), I would check the calendar for what is next. Posts are usually posted a week or so before the date, so the daily posts I would share were as stories on Instagram and Facebook.
Now, to keep myself organized, I also used a notebook that I carry around with me to notate to-do lists, reminders, random thoughts, and changes/updates to consider. It is a small notebook with a strap on it so I would leave my pen hanging there. It comes in handy especially during meetings when I would have to share drafts and can’t use the Notes app.
