7 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ...

... about being a personal assistant

by By Marni Colbert, PA for Al Wilson, Marcus Camby, and Carmelo Anthony (as told to Anna K. Clemmons)

1. NO TWO DAYS ARE ALIKE. "I make my own hours, but my time isn't mine. I have to plan my vacations around the athlete's schedule. I have an office in Carmelo's house, but the guys are nocturnal and call at all hours. I'm trying to train them to wait until the morning and e-mail me."
2. YOU WON'T FIND OPENINGS ON CRAIGSLIST. "My dad had Lakers season tickets back in 1988. I went to every game and met tons of people. Then I worked with Magic Johnson's agent in LA. When Kiki Vandeweghe got the Nuggets job, he brought me to Denver. I started doing so much with the players, it made sense to work with them directly. It's all about relationships."
3. I DON'T PLAY GAMES. "To me, it's off-limits to date players. Other PAs do. But most of us try to keep away from that. The job does get in the way of our personal lives, though. It's hard to meet men or new friends who don't just want autographs or tickets. That's why, now, I usually just say I'm in marketing."
4. WE'RE BEING WATCHED. "Often wives and girlfriends get jealous. I've worked for guys in the past who said, 'You have keys to my house. If a woman can't deal with that, she can leave.' But I've also heard about assistants being fired because a fiancée didn't like them."
5. PRICES MAY VARY. "Sometimes I'll work for free for the first month because I know I can prove my worth. But it's much easier to get fired than hired. PAs get let go all the time, for anything from stealing to telling things that shouldn't be told. The key is honesty. If you mess up, you have to fess up."
6. I DO EVERYTHING BUT DUNK. "I'm basically Melo. I know almost every detail of his life. I also book travel for his family, and I always make sure to let him know they're coming. Sometimes they tell me and forget to tell him."
7. YA GOTTA KNOW THE SCORE. "Whether a player fouls out or scores 49 will make a big difference in how I approach him. It's a hard job, but you can't take things personally. My goal is to help out with their lives, not take them over."

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