Meggin’s Current Articles

5 Tips For Effective Delegation – Recognize the Possibilities to Be More Productive

29th March, 2010 - Posted by Meggin - No Comments

Delegating is an essential part of being productive both at home and at work. There are certainly tasks that I am sure you have done where you asked yourself: “Did I earn a master’s degree to qualify me to stuff these envelopes?” Other times, you wonder, ‘Hmmm….why am I doing this when a machine can do this just as well?’ And still other times, you wish later (rather than sooner) that you had delegated.

Here are a few ideas to consider as you think about becoming a better delegator:

Know the definition of delegation. In general, delegating means asking for help with a task or larger project (and receiving a commitment to do what is asked). There are more involved definitions, but this is enough to get us started. Be very clear that delegating is NOT dumping and that if you are NOT an effective delegator, you cheat yourself, your company, and those with whom you work (plus your family if you still have one!)

Be clear on why you need to delegate. If you possess more time than you need AND all the knowledge in the world AND every skill that is imaginable AND interests and passions so diverse that it’s hard to fathom, you don’t need to consider delegation. For the rest of us…we do.

Write down the crises that have occurred because you did not delegate. This should not take long, but I’ll wait for you. Unfortunately, this is a case where recognizing what happens when we DO NOT delegate can encourage us to start being better delegators. It might be part of why you found this article.

Generate a list of people to whom you can delegate. Don’t forget teenage neighbors, anyone who needs to earn extra money, people who are “looking for something to do,” and family members. If you will just put on your thinking cap, I’m sure you will come up with quite a list. At this time in our economy, you can find incredibly talented people who will be thrilled to do some work for and with you.

Have a method for tracking delegated tasks. It’s easy to lose faith in delegation if it is causing you more stress than ever. That stress can be at least partially relieved if you have a way to track what it is you have delegated. You can

keep a list,

write dates for checking back in your planner,

set up a “help desk” system on your server,

create a spread sheet…

or myriad other possibilities. There are both simple and complex ways. Try something and if the method doesn’t work, try something else. And hey, you could even delegate the responsibility of finding a tracking method that will work for you.

Truly, productivity in business (and in our other endeavors) requires that we become effective and efficient delegators. See if you can implement are refine one of the ideas discussed in this article to enhance your overall productivity – by delegating. I believe you can!

And to learn more specifics of delegation, access the 5-hour training package I did recently on “Deputize…Then Delegate.” You’ll receive a hefty handout packet and downloadable MP3s–a total of nearly 5 hours of instruction. It will make a world of difference.

** http://meggin.com/DeputizeThenDelegate.php

(c) 2010 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm).