Leadership & Delegation
By Delegating Tasks You Can Save Time And Boost Your Leadership Status
In a previous post, Time Management & Procrastination, I mentioned that delegating tasks to others can save you time. I urged you to stop procrastinating and start giving them away. Now I’m going to say, “Take a few extra minutes—this is not procrastinating—to decide exactly which tasks would be the ones to give away.”
If you own the company and feel like making coffee, running the copier, and wiping smudges off windows, go ahead with the busywork. But if you work for others and you’re concerned that they may not view you as Leadership Material, drop these tasks as soon as you can.
The fact that you’re concerned about time management lets me know that you have more than enough to do at work. That’s good, because it means there’s probably something you can delegate.
Why don’t some people want to delegate?
- It could be that they want to appear indispensable—you know, “Just try to replace me!”
- It could be they think it’ll be too much trouble to explain to someone else how to do the job.
- Or, it could be they don’t want to accept the responsibility of making sure this other person is performing the new task well and on schedule.
To all three above, I say if you want to be considered Leadership Material, get over it! Now, are you ready to delegate? Good, here’s the Tip of the Week.
Tip:
There are certain tasks that lower your perceived status in the eyes of others. Your self-improvement lesson this week starts with jotting down the tasks you do in a month’s time. Put an up arrow in front of the status-enhancing ones and a down arrow in front of the down-dragging ones.
Concentrate on the down arrows. Add a #1 to those that you can see others doing fairly soon. Ah, who can you dump these on? No, let’s not get negative here. It may be possible to mentor an underling. What if you combined a couple of your menial tasks with one that’s a level up for this person? You could coach her (or him) while making sure those tasks are handled properly as well. Bundle these jobs together and visit your boss with your proposal for that up and coming person you have in mind, you know, your Time Saver.
Now go out there and improve your status while saving time! What could be better? Oh, I know, improving your status, saving time, and increasing your pay! We’ll get to that part soon.
Visit our website, www.WomensMedia.com, for Expert Advice for Working Women.
Further Reading:
Blog, Women’s Lunch Talk, by Nancy Clark, Time Management By Delegation
—5 Easy Steps of Delegation or listen to it here (about 5 minutes).
Blog, Women’s Lunch Talk, by Nancy Clark, Time Management & Procrastination —Tackling Procrastination Is A Time Management Tool That Works! or listen to it here (about 5 minutes).
Podcast (about 5 minutes), Working in Heels, by Nancy Clark, Looking for Female Leadership At The Top Of Companies? —What You Should Add To Your Resume To Be CEO-Ready or read it here.
Blog, Women’s Lunch Talk, by Nancy Clark, Challenging Gender Stereotypes —Speak Up When You Hear Gender Stereotypes or listen to it here (about 5 minutes).
Website, WomensMedia, by Hilary M. Lips, Women and Leadership: The Delicate Balancing Act
Website, WomensMedia, by Ramona Creel, 10 Ways to Delegate More Effectively
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