5 Tips for Delegating as an Entrepreneur

Delegation doesn't come naturally for many entrepreneurs. When you build and lead a business, you’ll be wearing many hats. You’ll have to play the role of a salesperson, an innovator, a financial manager and leader while you still have to deal with routine micro-tasks throughout the day. It can be fun at first, but eventually, this will start eating away at you.

Why Delegate? One person, or even two or three people, simply cannot shoulder the load of all the tasks that go into keeping a small business thriving, and trying to carry the world on your shoulders isn’t good for you or your bottom line.

Three years ago, my business was growing drastically, but I was afraid to delegate projects to my contractors and team members. Honestly, I was afraid that the task would not be done to my liking (talk about control issues).

Though I wanted to hold on tight to every project in my business, in order for me to succeed and grow my business without losing my mind, I had to start thinking about what work can be delegated and let go of trying to hold on to everything.

Here are 5 tips to delegating that will ease you in gradually, help take key tasks off your plate, and ultimately free you up to handle the work that matters most.

Figure Out What You’d Rather Not Do

If you could have it your way, what would you rather do in your company? No one loves every task equally, and if there are things you find yourself avoiding because you just don’t like doing them, it could be something you could delegate to someone who does.

If you dislike running inventory or posting on social media, but you’ve been doing it because no one else was available, make those tasks your priorities for delegation.

So get started with a list of things that you would delegate today if you could have it your way.

Choose Whom You Delegate To Wisely

Before you start assigning tasks, you need to be aware of your team’s strengths and weaknesses. Each individual is going to bring something different to the table, so if you want to make the most of your delegation process, you need to cater to those individual quirks.

You want to set them up for success, so be sure the work you’re giving them plays to their abilities. In other words, if someone admits they aren’t good with numbers, don’t give them the monthly invoicing just because they have some free time, or there isn’t anyone else who wants it.

Make your expectations clear

I’m convinced that most people want to do a good job, but they may need to know what you consider to be a job well done. In order for your team or contractors to succeed, it's important to be as specific as possible about your expectations.

What exactly are you currently doing, from start to finish? And what are your expectations as far as each step of the process? If you can articulate these, preferably in writing, then you can give them something they can reference if they have questions.

Make sure you also take a moment to address any questions or points of confusion early on to prevent problems down the line.

Trust, but verify

Obviously, you trust your workers or contractors to do the best job they can; otherwise, you wouldn’t have hired them. Once you assign a task and establish a deadline, it’s fair for you to trust that they’re going to get the job done. However, it’s also a good idea to verify that the process is underway. Establish open lines of communication so you and your teammates can update each other on progress, just to ensure that the deadline is going to be met and that there aren’t any further points of confusion.

Acknowledge the Person Taking Over

It may sound like a small point, but saying, “Thank you for taking this on” can be an invaluable way to make a team member not only feel appreciated, but also gain respect for the importance of the task. You know how important each piece of your business is to you, but the members/contractors of your team may not have the same insight or perspective. As such, acknowledging their contributions and letting them in on the importance of their role is a great way to motivate the person taking over, and educate them—not just about one particular task, but about best practices for running a small business.

Entrepreneurs who are successful at delegating have the time they need to focus on growing their businesses to new levels.

These tips are about making sure your delegated tasks get done effectively, but even more than that, they’re about maintaining a healthy workload (and your sanity) as an entrepreneur. You need to learn to delegate effectively—it isn’t optional. Otherwise, you’ll end up spreading yourself too thin, your tasks won’t be completed satisfactorily, and you’ll end up burning yourself out in the process.

To help you succeed in delegation and productivity, we have 197+ FREE business tools and resources that you can take advantage of. CLICK HERE TO ACCESS 197+ FREE BUSINESS TOOLS AND RESOURCES.