When to Delegate And When Not To

Delegating can really be an asset to you while you're doing business or working on projects. But there are times when delegating is negative - it actually inhibits your productivity. You need to learn what they are and how to change them - and when it's OK, or even good, to delegate.

First, guard against the need to do everything yourself. This sounds like it's OK, at first, but it's not actually good at all. You end up overloaded and overworked. You just can't do it all. You can do a lot with good organization and time management. But you just can't do everything.

As you're just getting started on a project, or just starting a new business you may need to do a lot. This is called "bootstrapping" and it's OK. But as your business grows, you will need to get help with some aspects of your business (even if you never hire employees, you may need to use virtual assistants, or even just consult with others).

If you have employees you should train them to do what you need them to do, then step back and trust them to do things.

If pride is an issue for you - get over it! It can be hard to give up things to others, especially when you've put a lot of work into it. There are some things you can and should do yourself, but it's also OK to trust others with things. Don't let your pride keep you from ever letting somebody else help.

There are, of course, times when you shouldn't delegate. Sometimes people delegate just to avoid having to take responsibility or do work any work. These people don't want to have to do it themselves - and they're wasting the valuable time of others.

When you make the choice to delegate, make sure it's positive. Acknowledge that you can't do everything perfectly - and sometimes there will be others more skilled than you. Or, it may make sense to delegate "busywork" or "routine" tasks to others so you can focus on more specialized work.

Sometimes a large project will require parts of it to be outsourced or delegated. That's fine - pick the parts of the project that you know you'll do well on or need to do, and have others do the parts that they're skilled at. This can make a large project manageable, and at times it just makes good sense.

Delegation is a balance. It can be hard at first, especially when you're building your own business from the ground up. But do look for places and tasks where delegation just makes sense. At the same time, don't delegate just to save yourself work that you really should be doing. Find a balance and go with it - remember that this most often means doing what you're good and most gifted at, and leave the rest to others.

Kristen has been writing articles for over 4 years. Her newest interest in increased productivity and efficiency in the home office. Come visit her latest site that discusses wonderful office helps like USB headset with microphone models and wireless microphone headset models.