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"Unfortunately, our job responsibilities and duties do not always match our own talents and gifts. Effective delegation of authority sets us free to prosper in our own uniqueness."
Experts commonly say you need to delegate. This need usually stems from having too much work, resulting in an inability to do much of anything well. The answer? Assign some of it to somebody else! Unfortunately, the individual assigned the task usually also has too much to do. Net result? Stress!
How do you solve the dilemma? The need to delegate is self-evident. However, experiences with delegation of authority often are not good ones. Many of us would rather "see that it gets done right the first time, even though I hate doing it." This article proposes a strategy on how to break the cycle.
Each of us needs to learn how to delegate authority. Some of us love to do the detail work, others do not. Some are natural communicators and very extroverted, others feel if they are left alone they get more work done. Some of us love mathematics and number crunching, while some capture big-picture visions and inspire those around them. Everyone is unique, with individual gifts, skills and abilities. Unfortunately, our job responsibilities and duties do not always match our own talents and gifts. Effective delegation of authority sets us free to prosper in our own uniqueness.
We think of tasks that another could do when we think of delegating authority or responsibility. "If only this (name the duty) could be done by ..." or "writing these reports drives me crazy." Many times our view of delegating runs along the lines of "I have the authority to assign this to Judy. She may not like it, but I can have her do it anyway." We don't recognize underlying assumptions coloring our thoughts. Without addressing these assumptions, our efforts are more likely to fail than succeed.
It is impossible to list all underlying assumptions, but we can identify the common ones passed over in our desire to be free of the burden.
1. The assigned party will have to do it.
2. They understand how to do it.
3. It is something they can do effectively.
4. They understood...