QUESTION: No matter how hard I try, I can’t get my boss organized. He’s always late and constantly asks for information at the last minute.

I have offered numerous suggestions, but he hasn’t tried any of them. As his assistant, I feel that I should be able to fix this, but I don’t know how.

ANSWER: Sad to say, I am not terribly optimistic about your ability to improve this situation. In matters of organization, you and your scattered boss are simply opposite personality types. This combination is not unusual, because chaotic managers often rely on meticulously thorough assistants to save them from themselves.

While some of these assistants relish the feeling of being indispensable, others are driven absolutely bonkers. If you fall into the latter category, you will have to decide whether your manager’s good qualities outweigh his inefficiency, because that trait is not likely to disappear.