Delegating can be one of the hardest tasks for leaders.
Many of us were promoted to leadership roles because we were successful in the work we did. We were talented. We worked hard. We were effective.
And now, we’re given the opportunity to multiply our talent, hard work, and effectiveness by LEADING OTHERS in doing that same work (not necessarily doing the work ourselves).
But, it can feel scary to give responsibility to others who have less experience than us – because we feel we are putting our reputation (and possibly our career success) in someone else’s hands.
Yet in order to grow as leaders, to avoid being a bottleneck, and to grow those we are responsible for, we must learn to delegate effectively.
Here are a few of the circumstances and beliefs that often prevent leaders from delegating effectively:
– I can do the work better/faster myself.
– We can’t afford to make mistakes.
– I don’t know how to delegate.
– My employees don’t have the experience.
– They need training.
– They’re already overloaded with work.
– I’m expected to handle this myself personally.
– We’re under a tight timeline.
– We’re understaffed.
– Decisions are made under crisis conditions.
Have you ever thought these things?
Even leaders who may not be struggling with these beliefs can end up delegating in a way that creates stress for all involved:
***Drive-by-delegating—giving work to your team members without providing the proper context or time
***Delegating and dumping—delegating in an “all or nothing” way and giving team members more than they’ve been trained to take care of
***Delegating and taking it back—giving responsibility to team members and then doing it yourself when the “pressure is on” or not completed to your standards
But, it doesn’t have to be this way.
More often than not, the people on our teams are more capable than we realize.
And, more often than not, we’ll realize that when we ourselves put intentional time into preparing our team members for what we’re delegating to them. It will actually save us time and energy in the long run.
Delegating doesn’t have to be hard. When we make the shift from boss to coach, we’re able to use delegation as a key tool for development, to build our bench and watch our team members shine.
If you want to build your skills as a coach leader, book a discovery call with me today!