Entry 04: You're Delegating Wrong
How to hand over the keys the right way.
Our last entry focused on the first leadership mindset shift from focusing on the fires of today to creating a vision for tomorrow. But how are you supposed to find time to think about the future?
Now that you have stepped into a leadership role, you have a number of new responsibilities, which means you need to hand off some of what you were doing to your team. So, you let your team know about the transition, explain their new tasks, and think ‘I’ve delegated.’ But you are wrong. You’ve handed over a set of keys to someone who doesn’t really know how to drive. And what often happens is the inexperienced driver ends up crashing the car, and you have to jump back in to clean up the mess. You spend more time fixing then if you would have just done it yourself in the first place. This cycle happens again and again, and you are never truly able to shift into your new role. You may think it’s your team member’s fault. And while sometimes that is true, often if how you delegated that set them up to fail in the first place. But how do you delegate the right way so you don’t have to keep stepping back in?
What is Delegating?
Delegating isn’t what you think. It’s not just giving a task to someone else. That’s an order. Delegating is entrusting a task or responsibility to someone that may or may not already have the expertise to do it. If you are doing delegation right they will be able to truly take ownership of the task. And for that to happen, there needs to be a time of transition.
Over my leadership career, this has been the toughest thing for me to do. As I have reflected on the times that something I delegated has failed, it’s often because I didn’t take the time to do it the right way. Like most things, to do it right, you have to slow down and take more time than you really want to. But this time up front will save you loads of time on the back end.
🔑 Handing Off the Keys: The Delegation Stages
Think of delegation like teaching someone to drive. You never just give someone the keys after explaining them how a car works. You have to take the time to coach them through it. This is the same for delegation. These four stages set your team member up to confidently take the wheel of the new task, and will give you the peace of mind in the process.
Stage 1: The Passenger (I do. You observe.)
This stage is where you are the driver and they are riding in the passenger seat. You are doing the driving, giving context, and teaching as you go. They are observing how you approach the task and learning what is necessary to complete it.
Focus on both the what of the task and the why. Show them how you think through the task, not just what you do to complete it.
Stage 2: The Permit (You do. I observe.)
The passenger moves into the driver seat, but only when the leader is riding shotgun. The team member does the driving but is coached during and after each outing. They consult the leader in real time and begin to build muscle memory by physically completing the task.
Only grab the wheel if they are about to run off the road. Resist the urge to take over otherwise.
Stage 3: The New Driver (You do and report back.)
They officially have a license and can drive the car on their own. They provide check-in’s to you after each drive and you are able to give guidance that can be applied to the next trip. You may also check-in on the trip in real time as needed.
Remember: Inspect what you expect. This is not the time to disappear. Make sure during 1:1’s that things are progressing and ask questions to make sure everything is on track.
Stage 4: The Independent (You do. Check-in as needed.)
The team member is not only in their own car, they are on their own insurance. Check-in’s are no longer needed and not all drives are reported.
Guidance is still available as needed, but it is not required or expected.
Stage 2 is the most important stage. Why? Because that is where you learn if your team member can actually be delegated to. When you begin to observe them driving, you should see signs that they get it. That they will be able to drive. And you should see some improvement with each outing. But if you don’t, you don’t have a delegation problem on your hands, you have a team member problem. If a team member stays in Stage 2 for too long, you need to start looking to get them in another seat or with another company. If you don’t, you will never be able to delegate fully and be stuck doing their job and yours.
“The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling while they do it.”
— Theodore Roosevelt
Reflection: Should I be delegating more?
Most leaders aren’t delegating enough. Think about everything on your plate right now and ask yourself these questions to see if you should be delegating more:
What am I doing that someone else on my team could do 80% as well, or better, with the right context?
What tasks drain my energy but don’t require my expertise?
What am I holding onto because of habit, fear, or ego—not because it’s strategic?
I’ve also found it helpful to use the following matrix to determine what should be delegated fast, and what should take more time and consideration. If it falls in the green, delegate away and move on. If it falls into the red or yellow, slow down and use the 4 stages listed above.
Wrapping Up
The best leaders don’t just do great work, they create an environment where others can do great work. Delegation is one of the most important things new leaders must do to be able to create the bandwidth needed to lead the team. It’s time to move that slider to the right!
✍️ And don’t forget to use this self-assessment for all the sliders to see which one your need to shift next!
🗓️ Next week: From Being a Player to Becoming a Coach.
Keep Leading. See you next week!
Kacy @