(Time to read this Blog is about 4 minutes)

Before we get to the main topic, here are a few things to get you thinking or smiling:

1. My Biz Quote of the week:
   “Creating a Brand is like painting a picture that your target customers want to be in.  Understand who they are, what they want, what they value and what they fear…then paint a beautiful and compelling Brand picture for them.”
   …Donald Cooper.
    
2. Quick Biz Tip:
   Reminder…it’s time to get working on your 2026 Business Plan:   
    
   In my October 1^st Blog, I wrote about the need to get started on your 2026 Business Plan and I provided a link Click Here to download my insightful Biz Tool #B-35 on how to do it.   This is the stuff that you’re paid to do.
    
3. The amazing ‘mushroom toilet’. Researchers at the University of British Columbia have built the first-ever mushroom-powered toilet.  This flushless throne uses the root network of mushrooms to quickly convert human waste into compost. This fungi toilet could replace all those super-smelly porta-potties.
    
   So, here’s the question for your business. Are you creating ‘the next best thing’ in your industry…or will you be the victim of those who do?
    
4. Broken bones could soon be fixed in a few minutes. Here’s another example of amazing innovation. A team of Chinese researchers has developed a new medical glue that can be injected into broken bones to bind the fragments back together in two to three minutes.
    
   The glue was inspired by the adhesive that oysters produce to stick to objects underwater.
    
5. Would you pay $30,000 to get help naming your baby? In the ‘has the world gone nuts?’ department, some stupidly wealthy people are paying a professional full-time baby-namer in San Francisco $30,000 to get help naming their baby. Apparently, she has had over 300 clients for her VIP service.

Now, to this week’s important topic:

The top 10 reasons why we don’t delegate…and how to fix them:

One of the biggest problems in many businesses today is that ‘the boss’ won’t delegate. This ‘boss’ could be the business owner, a department manager, or a supervisor.  They spend much of their time doing $20 and $30 an hour jobs when they’re paid to do $100 to $500 an hour jobs.  And the key job of planning, communicating, coaching, encouraging, measuring and rewarding the performance of others doesn’t get done. 

The result is that the business or Department lacks clarity, momentum and true leadership. Problems don’t get solved, opportunities get missed, customers get frustrated and go elsewhere, talented, initiative-taking employees leave in frustration and the business slowly grinds to a halt.  Sadly, I see a lot of this in my business coaching work!

So, why does this happen?  Why do ‘bosses’ fail to delegate?  In my 40 years of being in business and coaching other businesses around the world, below are the top 10 reasons for not delegating.  Which of these might apply to you, or others on your team …and how will you fix the problem?

1. Fear that someone else won’t do it as well as I would.
    
   The truth:  This means that you failed to hire capable people, or failed to properly train the good people that you’ve hired.
    
   The fix:  Hire people who are ‘wired’ to succeed and then train, coach, encourage and empower them to help you grow the business.  More about this later.
    
2. Fear that someone else will do it differently than me and, of course, my way is the only ‘right’ way.
    
   The fix:  Simply realize that your way is not the only ‘right’ way.  Be open to possibilities. 
    
3. Fear that someone else might do it better than me and that will embarrass me, or make me look incompetent. I feel threatened by really bright people, so I hire people who know less than I do and who do what they’re told.  And, besides, it feels good to be the ‘go to’ person when problems arise.
    
   Warning:  ‘We become what we hire’. If we hire 1^st rate people, we become a 1^st rate business, one recruitment at a time.  If we hire 2^nd and 3^rd rate people, we become a 2^nd or 3^rd rate business…and we’re in big trouble!
    
   The truth:  Hiring, training and empowering people to do it better than you is your job. It makes you a great Coach and, if there is a heaven, there’s express lane for Coaches.  Coaches create an extraordinary business by helping everyone in it be the best they can be.   
    
   The fix:  This is a tough one to fix because it deals with the boss’s fundamental insecurity and need to be the source of all knowledge. To grow a business, you must hire talented people in each specific area who know about 10 times more than you do about that specific area.  If you can’t overcome this fundamental insecurity, the business will remain small and mediocre…and then, likely, die.
    
4. If I delegate, I’ll lose control.
    
   The fix: For help with this one, you can purchase my complete set of ‘Business Assessment & Management Implementation Tools’ at donaldcooper.com and download my Biz Tool #B-26, ‘How to delegate, get more done and grow your people …without losing control:’ 
    
5. A fundamental belief that, ‘You can’t find good people anymore’, so I’ve given up looking for them. I just hire whoever shows up for an interview.
    
   The truth:  ‘The best people have to work for somebody…it’s just that you have to deserve them.’
    
   The fix:  Change your mindset and improve your employment experience, career opportunities and business culture to deserve the people you need?  Specifically, how will you do that?
    
   Get competitive with your pay.  Pay more and expect more. And remember that people have ‘4 Currencies’ in their lives.  A ‘currency’ is anything of value to people that they don’t have enough of.  The ‘4 Currencies’ in your employees’ lives are money, time, feeling safe (physically & emotionally safe) and feeling special.  Be sure to ‘pay’ them with all 4 ‘Currencies’.  Money alone is not enough.
    
6. I / we don’t have the ability or process to spot and identify the top talent we need, so we don’t get the top performers to whom we can delegate.
     
   The fix:  Just like in sports, your ability to be a ‘Talent Scout’ is one of the most important skills you can develop.  First off, be clear about the talent, experience, skill, attitude, energy level and personality that you need in each position in the business.
    
   Create a Job Description that states the outcomes to be delivered by the person in that position and the key activities required to deliver those outcomes.  Most Job Descriptions focus on activities only, rather than outcomes…and that’s a big mistake!
    
   Then, create a list of interview questions to ask to determine if the candidates you’re interviewing have the qualities you need.  Are there screening tests that reliably predict the likelihood of performance success and fit with your culture?
    
   If you’re not big enough to need or afford a full-time HR professional, can you hire an experienced HR freelancer to help with specific projects?
    
7. We have high staff turnover. Just when someone gets to the point where I could delegate to them…they leave.
    
   The fix:  Fix your employment experience, career opportunities and business culture so that good people want to stay and contribute.  This is easier said than done…but you have to do it, or the business will die. For help with this, purchase my complete set of ‘Business Assessment & Management Implementation Tools’ at donaldcooper.com and download my Biz Tool #B-18,  ’14 Keys to Creating A Winning Culture.’ 

8. I don’t have time to train people.  It’s just easier to do it myself.
    
   Note:  The problem with this that you can’t grow your business without growing your people. One of the top reasons that good people quit is because they’re not being trained, developed and encouraged to grow. They see no future, so they leave.  If you’re not building a Team, you’re not building a saleable business, and you’ve basically bought yourself a job.
    
   The fix:  Initially, it does take more time to train people to take on a new project or responsibility, just like it takes more time to wash your car with your 8-year-old than it does to just wash it yourself. Teaching new skills and nurturing judgement and confidence takes time.  But, in the longer term you’ve freed up time to plan, manage and have a life while helping and encouraging another human being to grow…and that’s a beautiful thing!
    
9. I don’t delegate certain tasks because I feel comfortable doing them myself. They keep me too busy to tackle the more difficult, high-value tasks that I really should be doing …but which I’m not sure how to handle.
    
   The fix:  Making the transition from being a ‘player’ to being a ‘coach’ is not easy …but that’s what’s needed here.
    
   ‘Playing’ and ‘coaching’ are two completely different skill sets. You need to grow and develop as a manager and leader (coach) and for that, you’ll likely need outside coaching.  This is a big part of what I do with clients, so we can chat…or you may have other possibilities in mind.
    
10. I don’t delegate certain tasks because they keep me busy so I don’t have to go home to an unhappy situation. The business has become my ‘neat fort’ and I need to keep it that way. The business is where I feel safe, secure, important, comfortable and in control.
     
    The fix:  This is another very tough one, but I see it a lot. It’s another area in which I’ve helped several clients.  It needs to be addressed but ‘The fix’ requires much more of a conversation that we have time for here.    

So, there are the 10 top reasons for not delegating.  Which ones sound most like your situation? What will you do to fix what needs fixing…and when will you start?

That’s it for this week…

Live brilliantly and be kind to each other!       

Donald Cooper 

Donald Cooper speaks and coaches internationally on management, marketing, and profitability.  He can be reached by email at donald@donaldcooper.com in Toronto, Canada.