Welcome to the October issue of The Total Leader® Newsletter from LMI UK, The DELEGATION issue.
We’re into the final quarter of the year with a lot of water under the bridge so far in 2023. Are you on track with where you wanted to be? What do you still want to achieve in the remainder of the year? What needs to happen in order for that to be achieved?
All questions which make this month’s topic, delegation, one of the biggies! It’s a fundamental aspect that every leader needs to master in order to maximise their potential, as well as that of their team and the whole organisation.
As we’ll see, delegation is as much about attitude as it is skill and requires great supporting processe in order to do it consistently well.
We hope you enjoy this month’s newsletter.
Who should be doing this?
Leadership could be described as the art of getting the right people in the right roles, doing the right things at the right time, and for the right amount of time (we should also add ‘with the right attitude’)!
If you can master this then the sky’s the limit!
In our experience, most leaders end up with multiple tasks and responsibilities on their plate that they really shouldn’t be doing. Some things don’t need doing at all; some things are important but should be done by someone else within the organisation; some things are best done by some external party.
How do you know which things are which?
It starts with clarity of goals – something we’ve written about extensively in previous editions of this newsletter.
Once you have absolute clarity, it’s possible to sift out what needs doing and what doesn’t. Once you know what must be done, you can then begin to work through who the best person is for each item.
This is where delegation comes in and it begins with deciding what things you absolutely should be doing yourself. In other words, given your experience and expertise, and your level of seniority, where can you add the most value in moving things towards the achievement of your goals?
Then it’s about delegating everything else!
This is the attitude part that comes before the skills part. Here are some common attitudes that hinder effective delegation. You may identify with some or all of these:
- Thinking it’s quicker to do it yourself rather than train someone else
- Being a perfectionist: it has to be done my way
- Busyness: no time to stop and think ‘who should be doing this?’
- Workaholic: just do everything without even thinking about involving others
- Lack of trust: will they care about it as much as I do?
- Fear of overburdening others
- Wanting to always come across as a hands-on, lead-by-example leader
You may be able to add one or two other reasons to the list. They key thing to recognise is that all the time you are doing things that others could be doing, you are limiting opportunity and stifling growth.
Reasons to delegate
There are three main reasons to delegate to someone:
- To save time or cost
- Because they’ll do it better than you
- For their development
Often it will end up being a combination of the above.
As a leader, delegation is the key tool you have for creating an environment where everyone is focused, feels valued and is growing in both technical skills and character/confidence. Done well, delegation impacts positively on every aspect of an organisation – morale, culture, staff retention/turnover, productivity, profitability, customer service etc.
There lots more that could be written, but for now we hope this has given you food for thought. Even if you find yourself without immediate team members to delegate to, the opportunities to outsource are tremendous and should not be dismissed.
Effective delegation multiplies your efforts many times over by using the time, knowledge, experience, and creative power of other people. Paul J. Meyer
Reframing stress & overwhelm
From cardiologist to leadership coach - we recently hosted a LinkedIn live event to introduce new LMI UK colleague Dr Toomas Särev who shared his experience of leadership in healthcare and passionate focus on helping leaders to avoid stress and overwhelm that is so prevalent in that sector. A story relevant no matter which sector you work in.
Bite-size Total Leader®
Leaders are faced continually with multiple, diverse situations and developing in all four core leadership elements gives a distinct advantage - like an actor who can convey the whole range of emotions, or a golfer who is brilliant on the putting green as well as off the tee.
In this section you’ll find practical bite-size ideas related to this month’s topic across the four elements of the Total Leader® that can help sharpen your own leadership skills.
1. Personal Productivity
Review (or identify, if not already done) your own High Payoff Activities – those things you do on an ongoing basis that are commensurate with your experience, expertise and level of seniority. Schedule regular time to work on these things so they are never neglected. Also create a list of Low Payoff Activities – things you do that would ideally be done by someone else. As you review this list, you’ll develop ideas of what you can delegate and to whom.
2. Personal Leadership
Focus on potential! Think about what you might be capable of achieving, and becoming, that you haven’t yet seen. Be inspired by your own potential and doing what you can to stretch yourself beyond your current experience. Extend this thought to include those in your team. As you become convinced of their yet-untapped potential it will help you to delegate to them in order to help them grow and become the best they can be.
3. Motivational Leadership
What is the culture in your organisation, and specifically around you as a leader? Do people feel believed in and empowered or micro-managed? Do they have freedom to express ideas for change and innovation? Are genuine mistakes viewed as learning opportunities or clamped down on harshly? If you’re not sure, take some time to find out. The environment in which delegation takes place will play a major role in it’s success.
4. Strategic Leadership
Delegation is a great way to handle challenges that arise day-to-day, but it should also be viewed from a long-term perspective. Where are you heading? What growth goals do you have and what will be needed by way of recruitment, promotion and development of existing staff to achieve those goals. Then you can involve people in these discussions – ‘here’s where you are now and here’s where I see you in the future. What do you see? Let’s work on your development plan together.’
Leadership development is not a one-off event and leadership is not simply a role or title, rather it’s a way of thinking and behaving. The best leaders are Total Leaders® and the most successful organisations develop leaders throughout the entire organisation.
Upcoming events
Foundations of Success Workshop
(2 hour online - goals / planning / time management / communication)
20th October & 15th November
“very motivational and applicable to any element of business. I would highly recommend to anyone!”
“really informative and interactive…provided solutions that can be easily incorporated into your daily routine. A really worthwhile session for anyone wanting to become more efficient.”
(July 2023 delegates)
FIRST TWO PLACES FREE FOR ANY UK ORG.
Total Leader Part 1: Effective Personal Productivity kick off (Online open programme)
Next start: 14th November 2023 - Total Leader® Part 1
Life-changing productivity improvement for you and the team you lead.
We trust you have enjoyed this edition of the LMI UK newsletter. If you’d like to share any feedback or discuss anything raised, please contact us at info@lmi-uk.com.