These five words placed at the end of your job description pretty much sum up the role of any assistant. Our roles are no longer closely tied to prescriptive set of tasks, and anyone who uses the excuse 'that's not in my job description' is bound to be in the market for a new role pretty quickly.

Over the years I've done some crazy 'other duties as required'; I've thrown a party for a car, hunted for joke gifts and fancy dress costumes, edited a book, babysat and even consoled an ex girlfriend of the boss! Despite all of these things being awkward, inconvenient and sometimes difficult at the time, each and every thing I've done that's 'outside my job description' has made me a better assistant. Being a good appointment setter, travel booker, typist and barista are all important functions of an assistant, but what makes you an exceptional assistant is your ability to make your manager's life easier through your flexibility and problem solving.

Over the years I've come to look forward to the 'other duties'. Not only are they usually an interesting challenge, they give me an opportunity to solve a problem and demonstrate just how much value I can add to the organisation.

Next time you're faced with a crazy sounding task try to use it as an opportunity to show off what you can really do (or at least as an opportunity to get away from your desk)!