A good friend of mine is a total control freak. She’ll fret over every single minute detail of everything, from dinner arrangements to business plans. I keep telling her to relax and not worry so much, but that just makes her worry about worrying so much. It’s a vicious circle. The hardest thing in the world for some people to do is delegate responsibility, but it’s one of the things you have to learn how to do in the business world, or you’re going to run yourself ragged trying to do the work you hired others to do.
Take, for instance, Mr. Michael Scott, of NBC’s brilliant remake sitcom The Office. Is he on the party planning committee? Nope, he tells Angela what he wants, and Angela makes it happen. He doesn’t’ do the accounting, or the sales. He doesn’t do the HR, and he doesn’t answer the phones. He’s the boss; Michael has the big picture, and he delegates responsibilities to the people he chose to do those jobs.
Michael’s people know their jobs, and do them well. The only trouble arises when, you guessed it, Michael tries to micromanage. The more you interfere in the work of people you’re paying to do a job, the worse things generally end up. That’s not just TV logic, that’s the real world. As the article shows, there are a lot of reasons to stay out of the way once you’ve hired outside help. If you’re going to pay for a professional, then by all means, let that person do their job.
Tags: delegating responsibilities, management, tips, small business help, managers
