Do You Delegate or Can You Do It By Yourself?

David Ogilvy, who is widely hailed as the father of advertising said, “Hire people who are better than you are, then leave them to get on with it . . . Look for people who will aim for the remarkable, who will not settle for the routine.” We need to learn to delegate some tasks to responsible and qualified people. Many people may remember the Looney Tunes episode entitled “Baseball Bugs,” where Bugs Bunny plays every position on the field against the other, much stronger team. He pitches the ball and then runs behind home plate and catches his own pitch. Next he throws a change up pitch so slow that three batters strike out on the same pitch. Although this was a cartoon, many of us are attempting to play every position in our lives. However, unlike Bugs Bunny, we aren’t gifted with unlimited energy.

Many people want to have complete control and do everything themselves. I could do my taxes but that would probably mean you would not be receiving this blog every week. Additionally, I’d probably have less time for my kids, wife, and other responsibilities. This means some things would go undone or not done with excellence.

I could shoot my own footage for my YouTube videos to save some money, but instead I hire a friend of mine who is much more skilled and passionate in that field than I am. Having the capability to do something is not the same as having the call to do something.

Your purpose requires too much of your focus to allow yourself to be drawn in several different, non-purpose related, directions. I realize things may come up from time to time that you have to deal with but that can’t be the norm. Time is precious because there is a limited amount of it and therefore we should demonstrate how we value it by maximizing our resources. In this instance, people are our greatest resource.

DELEGATE YOUR TIME

Michael Altshuler said, “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” Many people, myself included, at times struggle with making the best use of our time. Our focus is drawn away by something on social media, or the phone rings or an email causes us to stop one task in order to address the need put forth in the email. Technology has made us both more productive and more undisciplined. We must train ourselves to divide our time into blocks so that only tasks associated with that time block get our attention. When I am studying, that is the sole focus of that period of time. When I am doing a run-through for a speaking engagement that is the sole focus of that period of time. Even when I’m playing with my kids, that time is dedicated to them.

DELEGATE YOUR TEAM

Show me the quality of your inner circle and I can predict the likelihood of your vision coming to pass. “He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed” (Proverbs 13:20). Any good organization will seek to put people in positions that suit their gifts and will compensate them well in order to keep them. It is a mistake, typically born out of pride or arrogance, to try and perform tasks that don’t coincide with our strengths.

DELEGATE YOUR TASKS

Before you go to sleep at night you should know what tomorrow will look like. Better yet, before you enter the week you should have a general idea as to what your goals and tasks will be. Always know why you do what you do when you do it. That tongue twister is meant to convey that every task we undertake should be purpose driven. Even relaxing is an important task because it refreshes us so we can further advance our mission. (Just don’t make relaxing your first priority.) Your purpose is too important to miss steps, opportunities or blessings. Some tasks deserve priority status while other tasks should be delegated so that you can focus on those ‘priority tasks’. Complete your most important tasks at whatever time of day you have the most energy and watch as your productivity increases. In the words of Alexander Graham Bell, “Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work in hand. The Sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.”