Do you have a business support person or a team around you who is fully capable of getting things done, but instead of delegating, you try to do everything yourself? Are you at the point in your business where you know you need to hire someone to help but you just can’t let go? If that sounds like you, there’s a better way with the following delegation techniques.
Delegating tasks can be so difficult for some people. They act like a micro-manager who ensures that they see, do, and be everything. It’s hard for them to let others share the load or the glory. Maybe the control-freak is you.
You may have tried to delegate tasks in the past. Perhaps the quality of work wasn’t good enough to suit you so you ended up redoing everything. There’s no sense in delegating tasks in the first place if you know you’ll end up redoing them, right?
Here are three problems you might be using as excuses for not delegating:
• You feel you can do the job better yourself.
• There’s not enough time to train someone else to do the job.
• You feel like you have to redo someone else’s work.
If you’re facing these challenges, perhaps it’s time to look at some techniques you can use to find success in delegation.
Consider using these 10 delegation techniques:
1. Other people may not do the job the same way you would, but that doesn’t mean they won’t do an adequate job. Your assistant may be eager to do a great job and need only your encouragement, rather than for you to take over.
2. Train your staff. Perhaps those working with you do need some additional training. This shouldn’t be a reason to do everything yourself. Look at the need for additional training as a means to be better prepared in the future. Short-term training now can have a huge pay off later on. If you take the time to train your staff now, they’ll be better prepared for the next project.
3. Delegate the task itself, not the way in which it’s completed.
4. Prefer to have things done ‘your way’? No problem. Before you delegate, document step by step the way in which you complete the tasks. Do this for all the tasks you will want to entrust to others and you will effectively have created a standard operating procedures manual that your designate can follow.
5. Relax. There’s no sense in letting pressure for perfection bring you undue stress. While perfection would be great, it’s usually not expected.
6. Give yourself a break. It’s just not possible for you to do everything yourself, nor should you want to.
7. Other people can do the work even if you don’t think they’ll do as good a job as you.
8. If they’re having problems meeting the deadlines, instead of assuming they’re not going to get the job done, ask them if there’s anything you can do to help them meet the next deadline.
9. Expect that your Virtual Assistant will do a great job and you won’t be disappointed. People usually rise to our expectations.
10. Finally, give praise and positive feedback when the project is finished.
Instead of being a control-freak, decide now to let go of some of the responsibilities. Look for ways you can use the talents of others in the future. You may find that hiring a team and delegating tasks makes running your business much easier and more fun for everyone.