Laura Schwartz knew how to get noticed for all the right reasons at work – which is no mean feat when you are working for the most powerful man in the world.
Over the course of six years, the American worked her way up from being a student volunteer at the White House to becoming the director of events. Her president, Bill Clinton, referred to her as “Sarge” for her ability to give him orders.
“I was not a ‘yes man’, and was never intimidated by the president. I would agree or disagree, but if ever I disagreed I would always say why,” says Ms Schwartz. “I’ve always said, ‘Don’t be afraid if you don’t know the answer. Be afraid if you don’t know how to find it in just one call’.”
Nowadays Ms Schwartz, 41, is a best-selling author, television commentator and professional speaker who will be presenting at the Executive Secretary Live gathering in Dubai – an international two-day conference from the global training magazine Executive Secretary. The event starts on November 12, featuring eight of the world's top trainers for assistants.
But back in 1993, when she was a 19 year-old college student from Wisconsin, she had no idea what path her life would take.
Ms Schwartz started volunteering at the White House the day after Mr Clinton’s inauguration – answering phones, making coffee and photo-copying, along with five other press office volunteers.
“The first time I walked into the White House, it took my breath away. There was not one day I didn’t feel like I was part of something larger than myself,” she recalls.
Because Ms Schwartz had no political experience, she knew she had to learn fast. "I read the Washington Post and the Washington Times every day, in the days before we had online news, reading more than just the entertainment sections. And I listened to conversations around me.
“At that time staff members were getting their bearings, so they didn’t have time to sit down with us volunteers. One day I answered the phone to someone who said she was Maggie Williams. I said, ‘Oh Miss Williams, who are you with?’ She said, ‘I’m the first lady’s chief of staff.’ That was the point I knew I had to figure out who was who. So I took the president’s executive office phone book and read it to and from work on the bus and the subway. I memorised who was in what position so I did not make that mistake again.”
These are the sorts of gems Ms Schwartz will pass onto the hundreds of administrative workers attending next week’s Executive Secretary Live.
Even a seemingly monotonous task such as photo-copying can be a chance to learn new skills, says Ms Schwartz.
“I always made sure that I made a copy of everything I copied for myself. One day, one of the busy press secretaries walked in and said, ‘Gosh, does anyone out here know how to write a press release? And I said ‘I do.’ I’d never written one before in my life, but I took out an old press release I’d copied and created a new one.
“People got to know my name because I was always ready to do any task. There was one other girl who had volunteered right alongside me – but she worked nine-to-five. I thought I was only going to be there a short time, so I wanted to make the most of it.”
At the end of the term, Ms Schwartz was asked to stay on as a volunteer to help train up new interns. She lived with four other girls in a one-bedroom apartment, often working from 6.30am until 10pm seven days a week. She was subsequently rewarded for her diligence by being made Mid-West press secretary, then in 1995 director of television, and two years later she moved across the building to become the director of events. At the tender age of 24, she was the youngest-ever female presidential appointee.
“If you were producing results and you were on it, your age was never something that was questioned. You can’t mess it up on the world stage – there’s no room for error. Preparation was key, because then you could be confidant and you could execute.”
By 2001 Miss Schwartz was responsible for more than 1,000 events she oversaw in the 18 acres – the White House itself and the grounds. Her time as director of events included bill signings, press conferences and state dinners.
But she says her schedule was sometimes set off-key by Mr Clinton’s infamously tardy nature.
“The president was always late – in fact, we called it ‘CST’ for ‘Clinton Standard Time’. But he wasn’t late because he was lazy, he was late because he was a multitasker and had a lot going on. So even though all the guests, the press and the marine band were in place to start an event, the president might not be there because he was getting briefed on national security. So you know what? You deal with it.”
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
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FINAL RESULT
Sharjah Wanderers 20 Dubai Tigers 25 (After extra-time)
Wanderers
Tries: Gormley, Penalty
cons: Flaherty
Pens: Flaherty 2
Tigers
Tries: O’Donnell, Gibbons, Kelly
Cons: Caldwell 2
Pens: Caldwell, Cross
Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
Confirmed%20bouts%20(more%20to%20be%20added)
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Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Armen Sarkissian
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
The biog
Birthday: February 22, 1956
Born: Madahha near Chittagong, Bangladesh
Arrived in UAE: 1978
Exercise: At least one hour a day on the Corniche, from 5.30-6am and 7pm to 8pm.
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi? “Everywhere. Wherever you go, you can relax.”
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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The specs
Engine: 2x201bhp AC Permanent-magnetic electric
Transmission: n/a
Power: 402bhp
Torque: 659Nm
Price estimate: Dh200,000
On sale: Q3 2022
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.