I was recently on a flight with my mom when she brought up these messages she has been getting from random numbers via WhatsApp. She said she didn’t want to open them up because she’s heard so much in the news about hackers who try to get your info from them through messages.
I proceeded to go through them to block the numbers and delete the chats. I figured I could do it much faster than she could. My mom’s not the most tech-savvy person out there…
Delegating to My Mom
As I looked through the dozens of spam messages she received, I realized I didn’t have time to go through every single one. Then, I thought about all the spam messages she might receive in the future.
It was time to teach my mom! I showed her how to do it a few times and then turned it over to her. Initially, she was hesitant, but I told her she was doing it right. Then, she was off! It was a win-win. My mom got to clean her phone and learn how to keep it clean, and I got some time back to work on a few blog posts.
Delegation Reflection
- How often are you erasing your staff’s spam messages instead of teaching them how to do it themselves?
- What else could you have done with that time?
- How much time are you losing in the future by not teaching them?
Pre-Delegation Tasks
Here’s what you can do next time before you delegate to support your staff.
1. Visualize success for the task you’re delegating.
You need to know what you are delegating to somebody else. This means having a clear picture in your mind of what needs to be done and how it needs to be done.
- Example: I knew what success looked like when deleting spam messages because I did it myself first.
- In Practice: Create a rubric that clearly defines the necessary components for your delegating task.
2. Be clear on your staff’s knowledge and skill level with the task.
It is essential to know how familiar your staff is with the task. Somebody who has completed the task before may need much less guidance than somebody who hasn’t done it before.
- Example: I knew my mom’s comfort with technology was very low, so I needed to give her a simple process to follow.
- In Practice: Write down a list of the similar tasks the individual has already completed and how well they did. It’s also a good sign to do more observations if you can’t recall many tasks that you saw or experienced firsthand.
3. Align on the vision of success.
Your staff needs to be clear on your expectations for the task. It doesn’t matter that you have a solid understanding of what needs to be done if your staff isn’t aligned with that understanding.
- Example: I walked my mom through the process and then had her do it herself while I watched.
- In Practice: Ask the individual to walk you through how they will complete the task.
4. Plan ahead for observation.
In an ideal world, you delegate, the task gets done, and everybody’s happy. In the real world, you delegate and then observe for feedback opportunities. Planning is essential, though, since leaders often have countless priorities that compete for their time.
- Example: I planned to check in with my mom a few times during the hour-long flight to ensure she was still on the right track.
- In Practice: Schedule time on your calendar for the observation. Determine whether it will be announced or unannounced, so you know whether to invite your staff member via the calendar invite.
Commit
Which one of these pre-delegation steps do you need to improve on? Are there any other steps you found helpful to complete before delegating to somebody?
