Delegation requires the ability to effectively manage and lead other people, which certainly isn’t easy. Then again, most things worth doing aren’t easy. So, why delegate?

Let me tell you, delegation is extremely worth it for your business. Not only can you not do everything by yourself, you just really shouldn’t! With the increasing demands of your ever-growing business, you’d just burn yourself out if you did. And talk about missing out on the chance to grow exponentially when you have a team full of amazing, talented people inspired through your vision.

Maybe you’re so used to squeezing in the jobs of five people into your schedule. But no matter how much you try to be superhuman, your business will eventually stall if you don’t step in and become a leader for once. A leader is a visionary who moves through the collective contributions of other people.

Effective delegation involves becoming essential rather than involved.

On the Harvard Business Review, Jesse Sostrin makes the distinction between being essential and being involved as a leader in a business. He said, “the two are not the same — just as being busy and being productive are not necessarily equal.” Those who are involved make choices directly impacting the work they do, while those who are essential are decisive and wise in activating those around them.

When you’re essential, you’re not micromanaging every detail, and you’re also not overextending yourself. Yet it is through your vision and your ability to inspire confidence in the people around you that lets you all reach further as a company. 

Rather than only hiring people for basic tasks, delegation also involves strategically maximizing the potential of each person in your team. You can delegate whole projects to other people, but you can also have your team members assist you with small parts of your most important tasks so they are more exposed to the bigger picture. Of course, how much you delegate will depend on your current needs, but you must also understand that delegation isn’t just about “handing off tasks” to other people. At least, effective delegation is more than just that. 

Why You Need to Delegate

Delegation frees you up to focus on your high-value and higher-level tasks. And when you get everyone working together to the best of their abilities, your business growth and productivity is likely to skyrocket. 

With delegation, you can devote more time to strategic thinking, coaching, and leading your team. You start to move away from being a supercharged finisher of to-do lists and you become more of the visionary you are supposed to be. I mean, you’ve kickstarted this business with your vision. It’s even more important not to lose track of it when your business is growing so fast.

Delegation also empowers your team and contributes to each member’s professional development. When you care about your employee’s development and well-being, you inspire their commitment to their work. This is also because you’ve shown that you respect their abilities and trust their discretion. Likewise, you receive greater and more valuable contributions from employees who have grown a lot through your business.

Addressing the Common Objections to Delegating

If these benefits are not enough to get you on board, then we should address some challenges and objections you may have when it comes to delegating. 

You may fear the loss of control over certain tasks. This may be because you are still accountable for the success or failure of those tasks, regardless of who does them. If so, you hold on to all these tasks because you think only you can do better. 

In this scenario, you simply need to focus on building more trust. People will seldom let you down purposely, but you also need to give them the chance to do things right. This may involve some more training, which will only increase trust on both ends.

Of course, the other objection is that it would take more time to train and mentor another person than to complete a task. This is only temporarily true. Even then, it would totally depend on the task. Most first hires are assigned to repetitive and time-consuming tasks that don’t take long to learn. In this case, the return of investment is almost immediate. But for even the most complex of tasks, there will always be more time saved. The key is to always look at the long term.

Aside from saving your time, remember the importance of “managing your energy.” If you were one of those people who thought only you can do things better, consider how much better you can still do when your company has grown up to a certain size. You’re human, and at some point, something’s going to give. This is why no matter how challenging learning how to delegate can be, it is always extremely worth it when you finally learn how to do it right.

Delegation lets you go further.

Train your employees until you render yourself “obsolete.” Delegation is a complex process that requires trust, effective communication, and commitment. It’s about the old proverb where you teach someone to fish and you feed them for life. Delegation is walking an extra ten steps with your employee so they can walk a thousand more without you. Delegation is empowerment.

Stay tuned for the second part of this blog, titled How to Delegate That Sh*t!

To all the milestones you’ll surely cross together,