If you want to become a highly productive person, at work or in life, learn to delegate. The power is not just in offloading tasks, but in gaining the power to choose what is—and isn’t—worth your time. While this sounds so simple, most first-time managers find it difficult for reasons such as lack of experience or not being comfortable asking peers to do things. Let’s look at some of the hacks that will provide a clear direction in mastering the ‘Art of Delegation’.
Focus on the big picture
Rookie managers have a real knack for allowing immediate tasks to overshadow overarching initiatives. Of course, a leader shows great team spirit if he joins the troops in emergencies. But are all those emergencies true emergencies?
Are newer staff members being empowered to handle complex challenges? And if the rookie manager is busy fighting fires, who is thinking strategically for the department? To be successful at the next level, managers must demonstrate that they can think and act strategically and it all starts by practicing and focusing on goals and not tasks.
Enable the team rather than babysitting
Fear of delegation and thoughts like “I can do it better myself,” “I can’t fail,” or “I don’t want to depend on anyone else,” hinders my ability to do things correctly. The quickest way to overcome such fears is to evaluate the return.
It’s not whether you can complete the task on your own (if you really wanted to, you could). But ask yourself: What’s the return on investment by doing so? Remember, there’s a difference between you doing it better and you doing it differently. Oftentimes, the finished product isn’t what you would’ve produced, but that doesn’t mean it’s not just as good or effective.
Have clear and quantifiable objectives
Offloading a to-do list is more than just lightening your workload. Delegation is about empowerment, as it gives your team an opportunity to develop as individual leaders—the same way it allows you to be a more impactful manager.
While clear direction and delegation free up the manager’s time, it also develops teams to become more effective as a group. Ultimately, everyone wins, as team-based results are greater than individual results.
