Steps
to a Job as a Celebrity Assistant
As a
celebrity personal assistant you can earn up to $100,000
per year, and enjoy an incredible lifestyle that most
people can only dream about. In return for screening
fan mail, answering phones, and planning parties,
celebrity personal assistants are allowed to enter
an exclusive world and live like a star.
After all, celebrities
need to buy groceries and schedule doctor's appointments
just like everyone else, but unlike everyone
else they also have movie shoots, important meetings,
and volumes of phone calls to make. The personal assistant
makes sure that everything gets done, allowing the
celebrity to enjoy a semi-private life. A good "CPA"
functions as coordinator, accountant, and just about
anything else that a famous person might require.
They offer organization and peace of mind to those
who need it the most.
CPA perks often include
tickets to sold out concerts, first-class air travel,
expensive gifts, and great gossip about what other
celebrities are really like. Does this sound
like a great day at work to you? If so, here are 10
steps to breaking into this growing field of employment,
based on the fabjob.com
How to Become a Celebrity Personal Assistant.
1.
Choose a Type of Celebrity
Actors and rock stars
are not the only ones who need personal assistants.
You could decide to assist professional athletes,
politicians, directors, bestselling authors, wealthy
families, motivational speakers, dot-com millionaires…
basically anyone with enough money can hire someone
to be a personal assistant. It's probably best to
work for someone in a field you're interested in,
because the more you know, the more you have to offer.
Potential employers will find you more appealing as
a new hire.
2.
Develop Your Skills
CPAs need to know
a little bit about everything, and know where to find
out more. Celebrities are currently looking for internet-savvy,
technologically competent employees who can show them
how to transfer information from their palm pilot
to the computer, send an e-greeting to Mom, or keep
track of their personal finances.
Most celebrities are
also interested in your typing skills, etiquette knowledge,
and party planning or gift buying ability. Above all,
celebrities need to know that you will not reveal
their intimate secrets to the National Enquirer,
so make sure you get used to practicing the art of
discretion as well.
3.
Get Some Training
There is currently
no formal long-term education program to become a
personal assistant, but you can develop many of the
necessary skills in related programs, such as computer
courses, household management courses (for butlers
and household managers) and event planning courses
offered by community colleges.
4.
Get Some Experience
One great way to learn
the skills of being a celebrity personal assistant
is to be a non-celebrity PA first. You may even discover
that being a personal assistant to a non-celebrity
is more your speed if you really enjoy organizing
but don’t like the stress of the celebrity lifestyle.
5.
Find a Job Opening
Networking is an important
first step: let everyone know that you are a CPA who
is looking for work. Think about all of the people
you know, family and friends alike. In that vast network,
is there anyone who is closer to a celebrity than
you are? You can also meet celebrities through volunteering,
working as a production assistant on a movie set,
and job listings.
6.
Contact a Celebrity
Although you may not
speak with the celebrities themselves, you can usually
get in touch with their publicist, agent or even their
current personal assistant. Even if they aren't looking
for an assistant immediately, they may have an opening
in the future or know someone who does. There are
many books and websites available that list addresses
and contact information for celebrities.
7.
Avoid Common Mistakes
It would be great
if you could just strike up a conversation with someone
like an agent and get an immediate referral to a celebrity.
However, most people who are starting out don’t find
it easy to say the right things off the top of their
head. This is when having a script can be a tremendous
help. A script is simply an outline of what you want
to say. To sound like a professional avoid disclosing
too much personal information about yourself, sounding
too eager, or mentioning that you are hoping to launch
your own showbiz career. Instead, focus on what you
have to offer the celebrity.
8.
Join an Agency
Most CPAs agree that
this is a great inroad into the industry. Once you’ve
located one (more than a dozen agencies are listed
in the fabjob.com
How to Become a Celebrity Personal Assistant),
send a brief email query asking who you should contact
about becoming a CPA for one of their clients. Sign
up with as many agencies as possible.
9.
Ace the Interview
According to Jonathan
Holiff, former personal assistant to several celebrities,
"Assuming you have the skills and the temperament,
it really comes down to a personality match." You
will more than likely have to go through a number
of interviews before you get to meet your celebrity.
Don’t let it faze you; just be honest and direct with
everyone you meet. And when you meet your celebrity?
Don't gush. Concentrate on being professional and
establishing an immediate rapport with them.
10.
Join Professional Organizations
There are professional
organizations that assist celebrity personal assistants
with their career development. Once you start working
as a CPA, you will be able to join these organizations
and they will become an invaluable source of support
and information.
FabJob.com publishes
e-books that can help you break into a "fab" job.
Visit www.fabjob.com
for information.
