Culture Corner: Delegate and Make a Difference
Chances are you need to hear this today – just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.
Read that out loud to yourself a couple more times, tape that statement to your bathroom mirror or make it your screen saver.
We all juggle various duties at work and at home. We often try to convince ourselves we CAN get it all done, but we CANNOT do it all! At Lead to INSPIRE, we challenged ourselves several years ago to be more intentional about focusing on the right things and to remember to delegate when we could — at work and at home.
Here’s what you can do today to make a difference:
Make a list of your tasks for at work and home. Your list should include tasks that are time consuming or routine, as well as those that you procrastinate.
Go through each task and ask yourself – is this something only I can do?
If your answer is yes, obviously, there are some things only you can do, then prioritize and be intentional about getting those tasks completed.
If your answer is no, then take time to figure out who you could delegate to. Take your time to find the right person to match with each task. It helps to pay attention to the strengths of each individual.
If you answer, I don’t have anyone to delegate to, we challenge you to think differently.
At work, maybe it is someone who wants to learn more about the business, get promoted, or simply someone who enjoys data entry on a time-consuming report.
At home, it is important to share duties with a significant other and/or your children.
The point is, you don’t have to do everything yourself. Maybe order pizza once a week (a different spin on delegation) to lighten the weeknight load, or hire the teen teen down the street to mow your lawn once a week.
Delegating isn’t about pushing your work onto someone else; it’s about working smarter.
By delegating, you are helping yourself be more productive and you are helping someone else learn something new or dosomething they enjoy.
One last thought, once you talk through the delegated task with someone, let them know you’re available if they need you, but then step away and allow them to work on the project themselves.
That’s an important step in allowing you to focus on other things, helping you to be more productive.
