Cara Jones

Executive Assistant | Longmont, CO

PRONOUNS:

She/Her

WORKING HOURS:

  • Monday: 9am - 2pm MDT

  • Tuesday: 9am - 2pm MDT

  • Wednesday: 9am - 2pm MDT

  • Thursday: 9am - 2pm MDT

POWER TOOLS:

Google Workspace

Basic programming skills and understanding of computer science

Powerpoint

STRENGTHS:

Creative problem solving

Quick learner

Reframing and distilling information

Resourceful

Strategic thinking

Analytical

Artistic

Writing, both content and grammar

EXPERTISE:

Travel Planning

Event Planning

Project Management

Teaching

BIO:

I graduated from the Air Force Academy and served in the Air Force for 7 years, primarily in South Korea and Arkansas, with a side trip to Afghanistan. After separating, I stayed home with my children and learned how to weave fabric. I then began to design, create, and sell one-of-a-kind pieces to customers around the world.

I enjoy solving problems, creating beautiful useful things, and following Wikipedia rabbit holes to discover nearly-useless facts. I am constantly analyzing and improving the processes I interact with, seeking to optimize functionality, usability, and sustainability without sacrificing elegance or aesthetics.

My greatest joy comes from being able to use my skills to create your vision.

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE:

  • While in the Air Force, I served as the executive officer (the military version of an EA) for three different commanders.

  • I designed, coordinated, and managed the intelligence scenarios for military exercises focused on both tactical and operational-level responses.

  • As an intelligence officer, my primary task was to take in and analyze information and then provide various parties with the facts, conclusions, and potential impacts which were most relevant to each of them, in an accessible and customized format.

  • As a parent, I manage my family’s multitude of schedules, projects, events, priorities, activities, preferences, contacts, and more, using tools such as shared calendars, lists, and spreadsheets.

HOW I COMMUNICATE:

  • Strong preference for written communication, especially instructions, with verbal discussion as a follow up for clarification

  • Knowing the context of a task is imperative, rather than being asked to do an initial step or individual process without understanding an end goal or overarching purpose

  • I tend to need extra time to process information that is verbally communicated and take notes but may have follow-up questions that don’t occur to me at the moment

HOW I PREFER TO RECEIVE FEEDBACK:

  • Specific, direct, and actionable, with real-world examples of both what is wrong and what improvement or ‘correct’ would look like

  • No need to ‘sandwich’ bad feedback with good

  • Equally valuable is feedback regarding if/when I am excelling

  • Anything that hints at a problem without saying it will likely be missed (eg. ”you’re doing ok with this” will sound like “keep doing what you are doing” even if the intention is to imply it should be better than “ok”)

WORKING STYLE:

  • I prefer to work toward a goal rather than do a specific task

  • I like being given background and tangential information; I’d rather sort through too much info than be lacking it

  • I am comfortable asking questions and enjoy working with specifics.

  • I want latitude in determining how to accomplish the desired output, but I am not as comfortable with being asked to determine what that end result should look like

  • I like having multiple projects going on at once