Creating A Delegation Plan
Most people delegate out of desperation, not out of design. The problem with delegating out of desperation is that it is reactive, not proactive. And we all know that anything done reactively typically is less impactful than something done proactively.
If you wait to let things go until you have to, you’ve waited too long. Delegation should be something that is birthed out of vision towards the future. You’ll never maximize your potential by desperate delegation. At best, it will only help you keep your head above the water vs. swimming towards the future.
Delegation should be something that is birthed out of vision towards the future.
So how can you delegate out of design and get to a better future?
1) Identify What You Need To Delegate
How do you know what to specifically delegate if you haven’t clearly identified what it is you need to let go of. This is vital to gain a clear plan of action moving forward. You should keep your strengths and delegate your weaknesses. You should only do what only you can do. Did you get that? Only do what only you can do. If someone else can do it…let them do it. Don’t ever do what someone else can do. Make a list of the things that you should be doing and a list of the things you shouldn’t be doing. If you find yourself doing what you shouldn’t be doing…change it…because it will hold you back.
2) Schedule A Specific Delegation Timeframe
Don’t just make a list of what you need to delegate, also, attach specific deadlines to hand it off. Without dates to aim for you’ll delegate forever. You need to think through how long it will take to let go of something and work towards making it happen. Don’t just say I need to delegate project x…say, “I need to delegate project x by November 19th.” Now, you can reverse engineer the process to make that transition by the date.
3) Create A Delegation Playbook
Too many times we delegate verbally not visually. But we must remember, we are visual learners. For example, when I say think of an Elephant. You picture a large gray animal…you don’t think of the letters E-L-E-P-H-A-N-T. We think in images. When you delegate create something visual that helps the delegatee understand the roadmap and what is being asked of them specifically. Lay out a clear plan of expectations (with deadlines) that they can aspire to reach for. If a delegatee knows they need to reach a certain checkpoint by a certain date, they will be more inclined to make it happen.
