Many business owners struggle with delegation. We almost cringe just hearing the word. But without delegating tasks, people start to burn out and are unintentionally limiting their full potential. They become the chokepoint of their own business. It’s interesting that only 1% of businesses start to climb over $10 million in revenue. The number one reason is lack of delegation.
Many business owners think, “I have to do this myself in order to get it done right.” But really what they should think is, “It’s ridiculous that I’m doing this. Who’s really skilled at doing this that I can delegate it to?”
Once a business owner starts to think that others can do tasks better than they can and delegates them, they experience a breath of fresh air, become more confident, and have more clarity of thought because they’ve taken their weaknesses and delegated them to their co-workers’ strengths. To be sure you’re delegating it to the right person, you have to be sure they get it, want it, and have the capacity to do it.
If it’s takes 120% of their time for a business owner to do their job well, they must delegate the extra 20% to someone else. It’s time to let go and allow others to succeed in those tasks you don’t do well or have time for. As Jim Collins says in his book “Good to Great”, delegating well allows you to get the right people on the bus and get them in the right seats. When you delegate you also allow other people to realize a sense of accomplishment by playing to their strengths.
To get started, write a list of “it’s ridiculous that I’m doing this” tasks. This will give you an immediate idea of some things you can begin delegating to your team members.
