How to Deal With an Assistant?

The higher up you go, the more involved an assistant is in a decision making process. And it still blows me away when I look at anything that is being written or taught on how to deal with an assistant. There are some techniques out there that are just laughable as it relates to getting to decision makers. The number one answer was from assistance in regards to the question, how do you decide who gets put through? It's honesty, confidence, being polite. Here's one who's this Brandon said, who I like the most. People that I like. So there's some rocket science for you. We're talking to humans, right?"