The art of delegation

Delegation is not just a philosophy, it’s an art form. Ask anyone who manages people for a living, and they will tell you that it is the heart and soul of what they do. The ability to ask people to do things for you and get satisfactory results is a powerful tool.

But you first must establish somewhat of a report with your employees. They must trust your leadership. This is accomplished both through getting to know them and listening to their concerns.

Oftentimes people just need to air out their frustrations. It is important to take the time to listen to them if nothing else. Even if you cannot solve their problem, listen to what they have to say and provide honest feedback. If you tell them you will need some time to solve their problem, then follow up with them.

The next step is to train them. Provide them with the tools they need to do their job effectively. Once they accomplish this, provide them with the tools they need to do your job effectively. You can never over train someone.

Then you have to challenge them. Providing a person with a challenge is the best way to motivate them. Once they have the tools to succeed, provide them with a task that makes them think and be innovative. Sometimes the results may not be up to your expectation. But sometimes they may exceed your expectation.

The important thing is to provide feedback after the task is completed. Once you go through this process numerous times, the results will improve each time. This is all part of the developmental process for your associates.

If you follow these steps, delegation will be a powerful tool for you. Not only will you get things accomplished with minimal effort, you will provide your associates with invaluable work skills that will help you, your associates, and your company.