Let’s paint a picture together of what might be familiar to you. You’re the business owner, you’re the point person at your job site, you put in all the hours and you give your heart to the job only to end up feeling defeated at the end of the day or that nothing got done.
Now what causes that? Are there things within your grasp that you can implement today to get more of you out into the world? To stretch you further?
This idea is delegation. Delegation is a way to clone yourself. Delegation takes time to set up properly but it's a way to multiply the efforts you put forth every single day. This is what we want in the end, to get more done, in less time or to just take a weekend off without worrying about the business going under.
In his book Alpha Dog Mark Breslin says this:
If you can’t delegate in a manner that leverages the talent of those around you, then you can’t advance.
Did you just read that? Plain and simple- if you cannot learn to delegate you will be the ceiling that you will not be able to push through. You are the limiting factor for your business or crew if you do not learn to delegate well. Ouch, did that sting?
But let's be real clear- there's a difference between effective delegation and just bossing people around. Effective delegation (ED) isn't just bossing someone around and telling them how to do it. ED is listening to someone, empowering people, and setting people up for success. This takes time, energy and patience. If there is someone on your crew that can do something 70% as well as you? Try delegating. Think about your apprentices here- can he do a quick take off material needed for the next job while you complete the hard calculations of airflow through a building, or using the transit to transfer your next marks? This encourages our apprentices to have a sense of ownership and that they are making a valuable contribution.
As the business owner are you running around all day to different crews and feeling like you’re not getting anything done? Appoint some key guys to take care of different jobs and get back to doing what only you can do- establish the vision for the company and carry it forward in the community by getting more jobs or taking care of the business side of construction.
I know, I know, I can already hear your argument that you can do it faster and you can do it better, and at the beginning, this may be true, but if you want your business or crew to grow beyond you, delegation will be imperative; don’t think about the here and now, think about the future, the next five years.
Does the idea of delegation make you feel uncomfortable? Well, let’s dig deep into that feeling for a second. We think we can do things better or faster. We hoard it all to make us feel important. Is it frightening that you could be training your replacement? Is it scary that somebody might surpass you in their abilities to do something? Hoarding all these tasks and jobs for yourself is not healthy long-term, and it limits your growth opportunities.
Challenge for the week: don’t hold it all out of fear. Give it away and see what can happen. What is something you can delegate? is there something you can empower your kids to help you with? Is there something you can lead your crew to do better? Is there something in your business that you’re holding onto that somebody else can do just as well even better? (social media?)
Let me know your negative experiences with delegation.
See you in the pit!
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