{"id":2879,"date":"2020-01-08T07:00:23","date_gmt":"2020-01-08T07:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/?p=2879"},"modified":"2020-01-12T10:13:57","modified_gmt":"2020-01-12T10:13:57","slug":"delegating-tasks-is-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/2020\/01\/08\/delegating-tasks-is-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Delegating Tasks is Good\u2014Doing it Badly Isn\u2019t"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"668\" src=\"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Depositphotos_191289096_s-2019.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2885\" srcset=\"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Depositphotos_191289096_s-2019.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Depositphotos_191289096_s-2019-980x655.jpg 980w, https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Depositphotos_191289096_s-2019-480x321.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) 1000px, 100vw\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Has delegating tasks in a way that actually works been a struggle lately? If so, you\u2019re dealing with a pretty common problem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In her businessnewsdaily.com <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessnewsdaily.com\/8643-leader-delegation.html\">article<\/a> entitled 3 Elements of Delegation Every Manager Should Know, Marissa Sanfilippo shares the following reminder:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cAs a leader, you can&#8217;t possibly do everything on your own. Instead, learn to lean on your team and trust them to get the job done. As a result, you&#8217;ll see that your company can accomplish a lot more without bogging you down.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sounds easy enough, right? It\u2019s human nature for some to figure, <em>\u201cHow hard can it be? I just assign tasks to my employees and then move on.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This overly simplistic approach to delegating has been the bane of many a na\u00efve manager though. Learning how to delegate isn\u2019t nearly as easy as some make it out to be. Still, solid delegation skills are in reach for those who persevere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Delegating mistakes can lead to even more work than before if you don\u2019t learn to avoid them. They can also hurt your company\u2019s reputation if you fail to deliver your best efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What do you do if you\u2019re struggling to implement effective delegation and it\u2019s costing you big? Here are some examples of common delegating mistakes and how to steer clear of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Micromanaging<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a manager, it\u2019s easy to micromanage your staff without realizing you\u2019re doing it. And the problem is that pretty much no one enjoys being micromanaged. Worse yet, if you have competent staff, it slows down the project and keeps you from getting other pressing tasks done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The feeling of empowerment is an important aspect of your employees doing their best work. For that reason, delegate the outcome rather than the process it takes to get there. If you have a competent and creative team, they\u2019ll take care of the <em>how<\/em>. The main thing you need to communicate is <em>what<\/em> needs to get done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course, this needs to be balanced out if some training is necessary. Just be sure to call it what it is&#8211;training, not delegated work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Failing to Provide Any Direction During the Project<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now that we\u2019ve discussed the dangers of micromanaging, we should also mention the hazards of <a href=\"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/2019\/08\/28\/laissez-faire-leadership\/\">laissez-faire leadership<\/a> taken too far. Providing no insight into a project part way through could lead to a disappointing and inferior outcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If that happens, you\u2019ll be all the more tempted to micromanage the project the next time around. Often, you can provide regular feedback without feeling too suffocating to your staff. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Are you starting to lean too much towards micromanaging the project? Keep lines of communication open with your employees and tell them your goal to provide just enough info to create success without hampering the project by hovering over it too much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once your staff realizes you\u2019re in their corner, they\u2019ll help you find that balance. Another positive side benefit is they\u2019ll respect you a lot more for your transparency and approachability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Not Allowing Room for Mistakes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A seasoned virtual manager or on-site manager knows you can\u2019t prevent all mistakes from happening. And the most skilled managers know that to an extent it\u2019s okay. Setbacks or failures are an important aspect of staff having the courage to learn new skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Imagine a parent wanting their toddler to walk perfectly but never letting them stumble or fall along the way to their goal. Trying to prevent failure in that child would only lead to greater failure in the long run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The same holds true in the workplace. A good in-person supervisor or manager online should keep their staff from making any glaring errors while realizing mistakes will happen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also, be sure to stay communicative with your staff so they feel safe about coming to you if something doesn\u2019t go as planned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Thinking Delegating Tasks Should Only Happen In-House<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another common delegating mistake is thinking the only way to get a task or project done is through your everyday hourly staff. Today, more than ever, that\u2019s not always the best route to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sometimes you need skills now that your staff doesn\u2019t possess. It\u2019s also possible your staff is too overloaded to have extra items added to their to-do list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s where hiring a virtual assistant, virtual team or online business manager can give you the on-demand skills you need today. <a href=\"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/\">Smart to Finish<\/a> can provide <a href=\"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/our-services\/\">all of these needs for your business.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There\u2019s no reason to fret over lost productivity. You can get in touch with us to find out the benefits of delegation. Feel free to <a href=\"https:\/\/profit2-b7888c.pages.infusionsoft.net\/\">schedule a free 30-minute consultation<\/a> with us and start realizing your full potential.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Has delegating tasks in a way that actually works been a struggle lately? If so, you\u2019re dealing with a pretty common problem. In her businessnewsdaily.com article entitled 3 Elements of Delegation Every Manager Should Know, Marissa Sanfilippo shares the following reminder: \u201cAs a leader, you can&#8217;t possibly do everything on your own. Instead, learn to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2879","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v20.11 (Yoast SEO v26.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Delegating Tasks is Good\u2014Doing it Badly Isn\u2019t<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/smarttofinish.com\/Blog\/2020\/01\/08\/delegating-tasks-is-good\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Delegating Tasks is Good\u2014Doing it Badly Isn\u2019t\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Has delegating tasks in a way that actually works been a struggle lately? If so, you\u2019re dealing with a pretty common problem. In her businessnewsdaily.com article entitled 3 Elements of Delegation Every Manager Should Know, Marissa Sanfilippo shares the following reminder: \u201cAs a leader, you can&#8217;t possibly do everything on your own. 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