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The Art of Letting Go

“By the time I explain it I could have done it myself”




If there was a catch cry of a new to middle manager that you very rarely hear in the C Suite of an organisation, it is this: “It is easier to just do it myself.”  It is a belief system that is as self limiting as it common.


There’s a reason why you rarely hear these comments at the top of the org chart. You’ll never do what the top end of your role demands of you for as long as you are still completing tasks that people who report to you could do. 


Put provocatively, as I have hypothetically been known to do, lack of delegating and developing colleagues and direct reports is a bowling ball down the middle of Sub Optimization. People around you are not stretched to their full potential and your own ability to be advancing your own capabilities and contributions to the organisation is reduced. More than anything, to not take the time to delegate is telling the world you are playing the short game and not the long game. Kick that can down the road and replicate it as a culture and then tell me you want to work for a boss that holds the same philosophy.


“Does not delegate” and “Spreads themselves too thin” frequently appear in the lowest 10 items globally when leaders have 360 feedback surveys completed on them by key stakeholders.   


Delegating is not for everyone and not for all the time, but it is worth getting right.  Here are some of the greatest challenges for leaders:


  • Delegation is mistakenly viewed as binary  (“You do it” or “I’ll do it”), which makes it feel like a big gap to close.

  • The quote ‘true wisdom is being able to take a complex task or concept and explain it simply’, is not far off the mark when it comes to delegation. The issue is not always the other person, but our own difficulty articulating what we need.

  • We forget we didn’t become good at something the first time and expect it of others.

  • Delegation often requires time to plan, handover and get and give feedback and we don’t prioritise this.


Next time you’re in a hurry with your coworker, direct reports, or even the kids when they are trying to master something, remember that not taking time to delegate is more like an ankle bracelet than a badge of honour.  For everyone.

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