I've always somehow thought that people who need secretaries are disorganised and cannot cope with their own schedules.
Until I've realised that I would have done with one.
About a week before the full term starts, my inbox becomes flooded with emails. Societies kindly inform me of their activities in the coming two months. Law Faculty try to tempt me to write a piece to yet another student law journal. Tutors try to sort out our tutorial times, but as we all have schedules packed to the extremes it takes quite a few emails to actually come to any meaningful conclusion. Some people are even kind enough to mark their email with 'high importance'.
And then it comes, a lecture list with peculiarly oxfordish, and overly complicated, system of scheduling. Some lectures are in week 1 on Monday at 1 pm, but in week 2-5 on Thursday at 11 am, but it would be too easy if it just stayed this way, in the course of the term I will receive (yet another) email saying that 'we are really sorry, but the lecture in xxx will not take place this week and has be reschedule for week 7, wednesday at 9 am'. Well, great, but how am I supposed to keep up with all these changes to the lecture timetable, deadlines for applications, essay submissions, social events and hall opening hours changes? How?
I used to be a great fan of paper calendars. After being told off by one of my friends for not using mobile apps for this, I've actually made friends with the calendar on my phone. Fantastic, I can put detailed times there, everything is colour-coded and I can even set an alarm to avoid missing a very important appointment.
But this does not solve my problem. I'm still left with ridiculous amounts of emails. As far as I'm aware there is no app that would deal with them in a human-like way, sort out which 'high importance' messages are actually that important and how to prioritise all the task so that I can also have LIFE.
There is only one solution. Well, actually two. I could just stop checking my emails. But this is not a feasible solution. The way forward is to have a secretary. This amazing person who would go through my emails, put everything into my diary and remind me about little bits and bobs that are annoyingly small, but I have to do them anyway. In this way I will actually have time to do things that I'm supposed to do.
Enough of dreaming. Student budget does not provide for a secretary's salary. Unless there are any volunteers?
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