PA of Distinction

Successfully adding the designatory letters ‘DipPA’ to your name line is the highest professional endorsement – perhaps only surpassed by the addition of the academic award for PA Degree, BAPA.. But when you enter the realms of the PA elite by achieving a ‘Pass with Distinction’ in your DipPA then you should be on track for great things. This week Lisa Fawcett, PA to Ian Henderson Group Customer Services, Group Marketing and Communications Director of Transport for London, did just that.

Lisa said: “I am thrilled to have passed the Diploma but feel proudest about being only the 5th person ever to do this and achieve a Distinction grade.  I am really amazed at how well I did and feel like it’s been a big accomplishment. I know a Distinction will look great on my CV and I am truly grateful to APA, Gareth and my Director at TfL and his management team for supporting me though the course.”

Lisa joins Carly Beales, Laura Richardson, Emma Kernan-Staines and Kate Richardson as APA PAs of Distinction.

APA

New PA Diploma Holders

Pictured (L-R) are the three latest recipients of the prestigious APA Diploma in Personal Assistance (DipPA): Lisa Fawcett, Aimee Stephens and Samantha Herridge.

Lisa Fawcett said: “I really enjoyed the diploma course, it is definitely one of the best things I have ever done! It makes you realise you are more than ‘just a PA who emails and sets up meetings’ , it demonstrates  how much more you do and could potentially do, to be of even greater value to your Boss."

"Gareth was so supportive throughout; he has a great skill of recognising individual strengths and really works with them.  I felt no pressure or stress during the course or exams, it’s all at your own pace but some of the work assignments really get you thinking – But hey that’s what being a PA is all about, fast thinking and initiative. I would thoroughly recommend this course for all PAs, even if you have been in the role for years; it could teach you some great new skills.  I met some amazing people and have since been invited to other APA events were I was able to meet and network with other PAs – it’s great!"

Aimie Stephens was also awarded ‘The most inquisitive PA award’, a one-off said Gareth Osborne: “Aimie has an amazing ability to interrogate a problem and find all the right questions; which inevitably leads her to the right answers. It is a rare talent and worthy of serious development.”
APA Diploma courses run monthly at locations across the UK. For more details contact: training@paprofessional.com.

APA

Why a diet of emails, texts and status updates could be bad for our mental health

Modern technology could be damaging our minds by bombarding us with too much information, according to new research. The development of smart phones means that we are becoming more adept at multi-tasking our way through life, as we switch between texts, emails and tweets. But evidence suggests that the constant demand to deal with multiple sources of information is weakening our ability to screen out irrelevant data and prioritise what is important.

Research suggests that new gadgets are reducing our attention spans and making us slaves to modern technology. Researchers at Stanford University in California have already discovered that persistent multi-tasking can impede long-term memory. But now a team from University of California (San Francisco) has concluded that multi-tasking can also hamper short-term memory performance, especially among older adults.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, scientists found that multi-taskers performed worse in tests where they had to jump from one task to another - suggesting that they were easily distracted by irrelevant information.

There are also concerns of possible technology addiction - with frequent users unable to stop checking their messages or sending out updates at every opportunity. The lethal combination has forced some scientists to call for a 'technology diet' in a bid to prevent information overload. APA says: Don’t become a slave to technology, it can sometimes let you down and cause considerable frustration. Pick up the phone occasionally or better still meet the person and chat face-to-face.

APA

No clouds for Ash

Barack Obama wasn’t the only VIP visitor in town today as Mr & Mrs. O’Meara from Galway, Ireland called into London, on their way to Milan, to participate in the award of the Diploma in Personal Assistance to their daughter Ash. They were rightly pleased with her success.

Aisling O’Meara MAPA DipPA (Ash) received her Diploma from Gareth Osborne who praised her for her achievement and early, energetic involvement with APA and its activities. Gareth said: “Ash is a great PA. She and her Boss, Andrew, are keen to maximise the potential of their working relationship and she has already had me visit them at the Treasury and suggest ways they can develop together. Ash is also working with an APA Fellow Mentor for practical and professional support. She performed especially well during the Diploma programme and won a prestigious ‘Pass with Credit’ from her test and course assignments. It was especially nice to have her parents present when I made the award.”

APA’s membership in Ireland is set to rise in coming months as Maebh McGuinness FAPA DipPA and Angela Garry FAPA will be participating and speaking at PA event in Dublin next week (31st May and 1st June).

APA