Maggie Jacobs - The Elevated EA: Find Your Voice & Own Your Future as an Executive Assistant

Maggie's triumphant story of self-discovery and self-actualization in corporate America through the very common role as an Executive Assistant will convince anyone about the power of belief. Maggie's deep-seated belief that she is not only worthy of more, but deserving as well, has transformed her life from being a likely high school drop-out without direction, to a CEO's Right Hand. Harnessing this power of belief coupled with the relentless will to execute flawlessly as an unrepenting generalist makes her story an inspiration for anyone curious about how it is possible to have it all, while perceived by the world as being "just an admin.

Al-Husein Madhany
Life Coach & Co-Founder of ELS Talent Advisors

If it were not for Maggie Jacobs, I would not be on LinkedIn, amongst many other career enhancing decisions which Maggie confidently guided me towards when I was building my business. Meeting Maggie was divine timing for where I was at that time in my life, and I continue to learn from her every single time we talk. In this beautiful book, Maggie has the courage to tell her whole story, and in the process, inspires all of us to live a more authentic life, while following our dreams. A must read!

Libby Moore
Executive CoachSpeaker, & former Chief of Staff to Oprah Winfrey

"If you're ok with the status quo, don't read this book. But, if you're ready to regain control of your career and become an elevated assistant, Maggie's book is a must read."

Jeremy Burrows
Founder of LeaderAssistant.com and AssistantsGuide.com
Host of the The Leader Assistant Podcast

Rarely do I run into someone whom I immediately feel some sense of kinship with. When I met Maggie for the first time several years ago I intrinsically knew she was special and destined for big things. Fast forward to now and I'm filled with immense pride knowing that she has discovered her power and become a force. Upon reading Maggie's book I finally got a lot of the context that was missing in our previous meetings and conversations. The revelations in this book speak volumes to the woman Maggie has become, the voice she's found, and the honesty and integrity with which she operates.

The stories within the book are equal parts autobiographical and a call to action for EAs looking to elevate themselves and their careers. There's no perfect blueprint to get to the top. Everyone has a history that influences their outcomes. What Maggie beautifully represents in this book is the power of self-forgiveness, finding direction and belief, obeying your intuition, and opening your damn mouth and actually asking for what you want. I love this book because it's real, incredibly honest, and a fantastic account of.a life once plagued with challenges and disappointment now filled with wonder, confidence, and intention. It's an honor to know that my words had such positive impact on Maggie. This book will do exactly the same for the masses who read it. Especially the passionate ones.

Phoenix Normand
Chief at trb + BounceBack | Author of AS I SEE IT Volume 1: Business

The Elevated EA

Find Your Voice & Own Your Future as an Executive Assistant

Maggie Jacobs

Dedication

To Mom and Dad for giving me life and for being the parents you were and areso I could be the person I am today.

To Grandma and Kitty for loving me unconditionally as your own and instilling in me the values that matter most in life: integrity, kindness, humor, love, and grace.

To my many teachersfamily, friends, colleagues past and present, communities and groups who welcome, support, and love meand to everyone with whom Ive interacted.

Lastly, to my foundation, my rock, my husband, Scott: thank you for joining me on this journey.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Over the past 23 years, Ive had the opportunity to help establish and lead several organizations to success. Throughout my early career, Id always inherited an executive assistant and found myself jealous of other executives who seemingly had a different kind of relationship with their EA. While others had longstanding partnerships, based on years of working together, my experience with EAs had always been more transactional, focused on managing things like travel, calendaring, and expenses.

Perhaps I just didnt ask for the right things or spend enough time with my EA to really gel the relationship. Or maybe, I thought, it just takes years of working together to develop the kind of symbiotic relationship I saw with other executives and their EAs. Or, maybe I just hadnt gotten lucky enough to be assigned the right person for me.

In any case, I always figured I could use all the help I could get, and I appreciated the hard work that goes into the job. Plus, I used to think I didnt really need that much help. Id be thrilled to get a little assistance with travel plans, keeping me out of time-wasting meetings, or helping me prepare for a presentation.

It wasnt until I came to 6sense and met Maggie that I realized what was possible.

As CEO, Im responsible for advancing the companys vision, setting the tone and culture, and directing the operations of the business. And like most CEOs, I have what I consider to be an outstanding executive leadership team who help me to guide and direct the business. But as great as my team is, no single individual sees more, or shares more of the challenges of what it means to be CEO than my EA, Maggie.

My relationship with Maggie has changed my view of not only the role an EA can play in supporting an executive, but in supporting the business.

Maggie is a true partner in productivity and together we actively collaborate on management efficiency, creating high performing teams, driving corporate culture, and more. Maggie actively looks for opportunities within the company and for myself for growth and development, and together we plan and execute against our goals. She pushes me every single day to bring my A game, my best self.

But this didnt happen by accident or overnight. Getting here took a commitment from both of us.

For my part, I had to be willing to expose a certain amount of weakness, vulnerability. I had to admit I didnt have every answer, I didnt see everything. For many CEOs, and for me especially, this level of trust was not something easily given, but Maggie did her part to earn it.

Maggie regularly attends leadership meetings, sits in on my key 1:1s, helps facilitate town halls, and assists with corporate comms to understand how the business operates. She asks questions and digests learnings in order to grow her understanding of the challenges we face as an organization, and is able to anticipate where, when and how I operate keeping me aligned both strategically and tactically.

I love that she cares enough about me, the company, and our mission to push us to engage at a higher level. Part taskmaster, part confidant, part advisor, and part friend, Maggie has become an invaluable member of my team in ways I never imagined possible from an EA.

I believe this book presents a unique and compelling opportunity for EAs and executives alike to rethink whats possible from the role. As an EA, you are in a remarkable position to impact the business in ways others in the organization simply cant. I encourage you to read this book and leverage Maggies insights to rethink whats possible, and to build a different kind of relationship with your executive based on collaboration, shared goals, and trust.

But in order to do that, youll need to elevate your game.

Jason Zintak, President & CEO of 6sense

This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.