How to Coach Yourself and Others Influencing, Inter Personal and Leadership Skills | Page 100

8. Delegation
Do what you do best, and give away the rest to someone else. An effective leader
delegates broad responsibilities to team members and expects them to handle the
details. Delegating responsibilities to capable personnel has many advantages. It
distributes the workload, results in higher efficiency and increased motivation, and
develops the skills of the workforce. People learn more by doing than by any other
means. Delegation provides opportunities for people to develop leadership skills.
Effective delegation involves:
 Identifying an appropriate person for the task.
 Preparing the person by clearly stating desired outcomes while encouraging risktaking and innovation.
 Ensuring that the person has the necessary authority to do the job properly.
 Holding the person accountable for agreed-upon outcomes.
 Maintaining enough contact for support and monitoring of progress without
“hovering.”
 Acknowledging success and giving credit where it is due
Do you struggle to keep up with all the tasks and key jobs you are in charge of? You are
not alone. Letting go, or delegating, is not something that comes easily to most small
business owners. However, as your business grows and you get pulled in different
directions, it is important for you to delegate or else risk falling behind your goals.
Learning what to delegate and how to delegate successfully can make it a win-win
situation for both you and the employee picking up the workload.
There are many reasons to learn to delegate. A primary motive is to decrease routine
tasks to allow you to focus on other aspects of your business. Getting out from under
some of the day to day items creates time for you to plan and execute business goals
that improve customer service, grow your client base, and manage operations more
effectively. It might even make taking time off for yourself and your family a reality.
Delegation is a good way to provide career growth for your staff and develop more depth
in your supervisor ranks. Having bench strength in routine operations protects against
some of the risks associated with your business being dependent on you. Imagine the
peace of mind you can have knowing your business will continue even if you are
temporarily unable to run it yourself.
Delegating allows you to tap into new resources and accomplish tasks that you put on
the back burner because there’s nev