Best Ways to Save Your Time: 5 Delegation Tips

There is a famous saying, Work Smarter, not harder. It is a common misconception that working endlessly and around the clock will open the doors to new opportunities. Well, this is not the case most of the time, and in the long run, this could be devastating for your health and career. The best way to save time is to delegate well.

Whether you just hired a first intern, a new virtual assistant or already manage many employees, you will find in this article tips and tools to boost your delegation skills . First, we will share an easy method to rethink your delegation process, then key tips and tools for direct results.

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Know which tasks can be delegated B.E.S.T…

One of the common hurdles in delegation is that you are not sure which task should be delegated. Fortunately, we have a simple but efficient method : B.E.S.T.T.T.

Better at, Easy, Small, Teachable, Time-consuming and Time-sensitive.

Using this mnemonic device, you can easily find what can be delegated. Start writing down your tasks of the week or the month in detail and see what can be categorized in the followings:

Better at. Everybody has their unique talent and specific skills. If someone can complete a task better than you, then it might be a good idea to delegate it. Think about what you are good at and bad at. You will be able to find someone who can do better than you on some tasks.

Easy. Some tasks do not require much skill, and there is no need to train somebody for it. Almost anybody can perform a task such as transferring files from a device to another or copying and pasting data. You can easily delegate these things to reduce the burden on your shoulders.

Small. Small tasks take very little time, but when you add them up, it becomes quite a considerable amount. You can easily assign these small jobs to somebody. For example, scheduling meetings, booking flights and accommodation for trips, researching certain information can be easily delegated.

Teachable. If you have a task that you can teach to somebody and does not require your expertise, then it is a worthwhile task to delegate.

Time-Consuming. If you are doing a time-consuming task, then look for breaking it into segments and then delegate it. Depending on the task, you can also delegate partially.

Time-Sensitive. If you have too much on your hands and you cannot finish all the projects in the given time frame, then you should look for someone who can work with you or someone you can delegate parts of the project.

Apply this framework to your current workload to find out what should be delegated first, what could be taught as soon as possible and what can save you the most time. Next, we will focus on finding the right person to delegate those tasks to.

How to Find the Right Person to Delegate

Remember everybody is unique and has specific knowledge and expertise. If you are working in a team, get to know the strengths and interests of your team members. Remember to review their resume once more, you might be surprised by skills and experience you didn’t know they had.

An executive or a team manager often have so much to do at the same time, it is not always easy for your coworkers to know everything you do, it is hard to keep track and have a global vision of the current labor distribution, remember to share your hard work. If there is not a lot of transversal communication, it can be instructive and highly beneficial to do a collaborative team task map, writing down which tasks are done regularly on a project or a business and then ask everyone what task they could/would like to take over.

If there is somebody who can do a task better than yourself, then it is a win-win situation for everybody. It is empowering to get responsibilities for your coworkers and the result might be beyond your expectations.

When you don’t find the right person in the team to delegate or if you are working alone, then you can outsource. In this digital world, it is not difficult to find someone with the exact skill you want.

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Share your Vision by Giving Clear Directions

No matter what the task is, when you are delegating, always take the time out to clarify all the objectives involved. Miscommunication is the most common reason people fail at doing a delegated task. Always ask the person you are delegating to if they understand all the requirements and if they have any questions in mind before starting the job. Face to face and video meetings are the best way to set goals.

After the meeting, you should follow-up and see if all your expectations and objectives are stored and can be viewed at any time. Everyone has a different working style: as long as targets and goals are achieved, flexibility and hands off management are probably your best policies as it often delivers better results and motivates employees.

Use the Right Tools for Task Management

You might have heard that what gets measured gets improved. In the same way, when it comes to delegation, what gets tracked gets done. Delegating a task to someone and then forgetting about it is the worst thing you can do for yourself and the team. You must follow the tasks you assign to be sure they are completed correctly.

Keep track of the tasks by entering them in your journal or outlook calendar, so you know when you are expecting a job to be completed. There are a number of task management software available that can help you in the delegation process. You can also try online tools : Clickup, Monday, Nozi, Omnifocus, and Things are just to name a few, each having their own interesting features and style.

This way, you will be informed about the progress of the task as well. Follow up, and reminder emails are an excellent way to keep everything in check.

Importance of Feedback

Delegation builds relations between management and employees. Once the task is done, ask them how it went and if they had any difficulties. Did they receive all the required information to complete the task? Also get feedback from them to know if your expectations and goals were realistic, and if the timeline to complete the task was appropriate.

Once you have all this information, you will know better how you want to delegate. Always provide feedback to team members as well. Tell them in a constructive manner when they miss something. Appreciate their effort when the task is completed just as you wanted and reward them in a way that keeps their motivation level high.

Conclusion

Many professionals are scared of delegation because of having to rely on somebody else and it sometimes feels like you are compromising on quality. But if you surround yourself with reliable and efficient workers, you’re in for a smooth ride. Delegation is an essential skill if you want to move up the next level. The sooner you start, the better.