WEBVTT 00:00:27.530 --> 00:00:29.410 back this is food for thought thoughts if it 00:00:29.410 --> 00:00:32.490 were you and i'm your host Neo Gentrics i hope 00:00:32.490 --> 00:00:34.630 you guys have been having a good week uh hope 00:00:34.630 --> 00:00:36.829 you had a good june school's over for except 00:00:36.829 --> 00:00:40.710 for those who have to do summer school i do sincerely 00:00:40.710 --> 00:00:44.630 apologize but for those of us who are still out 00:00:44.630 --> 00:00:47.670 and trying to make a living today's topic is 00:00:47.670 --> 00:00:50.070 on delegation skills last time we covered time 00:00:50.070 --> 00:00:51.829 management skills i said i was going to cover 00:00:51.829 --> 00:00:54.049 how to minimize distractions and time wasters 00:00:54.049 --> 00:00:57.689 i will But first, let's go ahead and cover delegation. 00:00:58.369 --> 00:01:00.850 So you know what I mean by that and how it works. 00:01:01.750 --> 00:01:04.430 Okay. Besides, one of the most important questions 00:01:04.430 --> 00:01:08.989 to ask or that people should ask themselves is, 00:01:09.030 --> 00:01:11.709 you know, if you want to delegate a task, whether 00:01:11.709 --> 00:01:16.170 at home or in the workplace, you know, how much 00:01:16.170 --> 00:01:19.469 control? Ask yourself this. How much control 00:01:19.469 --> 00:01:23.599 do you really want over the task? Keep in mind 00:01:23.599 --> 00:01:25.140 that the more control you have over the task, 00:01:25.260 --> 00:01:27.060 the more practical it'll be to have it done and 00:01:27.060 --> 00:01:28.579 the other person will do it. But that means that 00:01:28.579 --> 00:01:30.959 there'll be a lot of snags. They'll have to constantly 00:01:30.959 --> 00:01:34.200 keep stopping to ask you questions. So, you know, 00:01:34.200 --> 00:01:37.140 kind of weigh your options with that. But to 00:01:37.140 --> 00:01:41.939 be honest, to answer this question and the way 00:01:41.939 --> 00:01:44.180 we're going to answer it will drive you to delegate 00:01:44.180 --> 00:01:47.780 the task. How often you meet with the person 00:01:47.780 --> 00:01:51.040 doing that task and, you know, the level of detail 00:01:51.040 --> 00:01:53.849 you want to do. And this is something that I 00:01:53.849 --> 00:01:56.489 want to make known because just because you delegate 00:01:56.489 --> 00:01:58.329 a task doesn't mean that it's out of your hands. 00:01:58.409 --> 00:02:01.469 You're still responsible for it. Once more, saying 00:02:01.469 --> 00:02:04.409 that you want one level of control when actually 00:02:04.409 --> 00:02:07.430 you want another is likely to confuse your team 00:02:07.430 --> 00:02:10.129 and make them anxious and less effective. So 00:02:10.129 --> 00:02:14.490 it really is important that you know what you 00:02:14.490 --> 00:02:17.469 want to communicate and how clearly you communicate 00:02:17.469 --> 00:02:19.050 it. Otherwise, you're just going to confuse the 00:02:19.050 --> 00:02:22.460 heck out of everybody. Okay? Something to keep 00:02:22.460 --> 00:02:25.400 in mind is to know the difference between no 00:02:25.400 --> 00:02:28.939 control and total control, which I wish a lot 00:02:28.939 --> 00:02:31.879 of people did understand. So let's get into it. 00:02:51.150 --> 00:02:54.050 So, like I said before, between no control and 00:02:54.050 --> 00:02:56.069 taking total control, there is a huge difference. 00:02:56.289 --> 00:02:58.590 Think of control over the task as being shared 00:02:58.590 --> 00:03:01.750 in some way between the leader, that is the person 00:03:01.750 --> 00:03:04.110 delegating the work, and the people who actually 00:03:04.110 --> 00:03:09.729 follow doing, you know, the work. Okay? The level 00:03:09.729 --> 00:03:12.189 of control can vary from the leader being in 00:03:12.189 --> 00:03:14.490 total control to the followers being in total 00:03:14.490 --> 00:03:16.469 control. I mean, there's a whole spectrum of 00:03:16.469 --> 00:03:19.330 shared control between both. It just depends 00:03:19.330 --> 00:03:22.419 on... if the leader is in total control or not 00:03:22.419 --> 00:03:26.439 and that's a leadership style okay now that's 00:03:26.439 --> 00:03:28.900 a whole nother thing entirely i'll cover that 00:03:28.900 --> 00:03:32.740 later but anyway the leadership style being used 00:03:32.740 --> 00:03:36.280 here is likely to be either commanding or pace 00:03:36.280 --> 00:03:41.680 setting shared control also could be authoritative 00:03:41.680 --> 00:03:43.759 and visionary but again that depends on the person 00:03:43.759 --> 00:03:46.379 the leader relies on the quality of their vision 00:03:46.379 --> 00:03:48.939 to bring their team together that's typically 00:03:48.939 --> 00:03:52.930 what that means Or it can be the, what's the 00:03:52.930 --> 00:03:56.830 word, democratic or coaching or affiliative. 00:03:56.870 --> 00:04:00.250 I mean, all of which are very much linked to 00:04:00.250 --> 00:04:02.469 dialogue. It depends on how you carry yourself, 00:04:02.610 --> 00:04:07.069 how you choose to go about, you know, distributing 00:04:07.069 --> 00:04:10.550 the workload and how much, again, how much control 00:04:10.550 --> 00:04:14.620 you give. So total control. Lying with the followers 00:04:14.620 --> 00:04:17.259 is not often seen, though it does happen, and 00:04:17.259 --> 00:04:20.240 because of the level of risk to the leader that's 00:04:20.240 --> 00:04:25.439 involved, it's more commonly described as a laissez 00:04:25.439 --> 00:04:28.420 -faire relationship, if you know what I mean. 00:04:28.899 --> 00:04:31.639 Which should give you some idea of the level 00:04:31.639 --> 00:04:35.399 of esteem in which, you know, it's not held by 00:04:35.399 --> 00:04:38.300 the leadership gurus out there and the people 00:04:38.300 --> 00:04:41.180 in charge. So, it's not typically something done 00:04:41.180 --> 00:04:45.199 because... It just, it's problematic, it's chaotic, 00:04:45.439 --> 00:04:48.660 it's unorganized. I mean, there's plenty of evidence 00:04:48.660 --> 00:04:50.740 from psychology that one of the most stressful 00:04:50.740 --> 00:04:54.420 conditions in work or life is the lack of control 00:04:54.420 --> 00:04:57.079 of what you can do and what you can't do. And, 00:04:57.079 --> 00:05:00.339 you know, for most people, most of us, we can 00:05:00.339 --> 00:05:03.019 cope with most of our problems, but lack of control 00:05:03.019 --> 00:05:06.819 leaves us unmotivated, even depressed, or stressed, 00:05:06.959 --> 00:05:09.220 tired, don't want to do nothing. This explains 00:05:09.220 --> 00:05:11.939 why commanding and pace setting leaderships can't 00:05:11.939 --> 00:05:14.339 be used for very long without profound effects 00:05:14.339 --> 00:05:19.459 on you or your team. It's also what explains 00:05:19.459 --> 00:05:23.899 why the Leia's Fair relationship is not seen 00:05:23.899 --> 00:05:26.259 very often because it's very stressful for the 00:05:26.259 --> 00:05:28.759 leader not knowing what's going on and giving 00:05:28.759 --> 00:05:32.480 his team full control over whatever the project 00:05:32.480 --> 00:06:06.579 is. All right, everybody, let's go ahead and 00:06:06.579 --> 00:06:08.379 talk about the nine different levels of delegation 00:06:08.379 --> 00:06:13.600 that exist. With the level of control in mind, 00:06:13.819 --> 00:06:16.600 we can then, you know, move on to things that, 00:06:16.600 --> 00:06:20.379 and think about how you choose to delegate your 00:06:20.379 --> 00:06:24.740 work or tasks. And, you know, Tim, what's his 00:06:24.740 --> 00:06:26.959 name? Tim Brighouse, I believe his name was, 00:06:27.019 --> 00:06:30.060 the former schools commissioner for London. He 00:06:30.060 --> 00:06:34.639 defined nine levels of delegation in which people 00:06:34.639 --> 00:06:39.819 are aware of and use. And the first one is, look 00:06:39.819 --> 00:06:43.800 into this problem, give me all the facts, I will 00:06:43.800 --> 00:06:46.740 then decide what to do. That's the first level. 00:06:47.759 --> 00:06:49.959 This is what you would tell the person that you're 00:06:49.959 --> 00:06:52.740 trying to delegate the task to, to see if they're 00:06:52.740 --> 00:06:55.620 competent, I'm assuming. Based off of the fact 00:06:55.620 --> 00:06:59.259 that he's basically giving him a task. See if 00:06:59.259 --> 00:07:02.800 he what what what results result resound from 00:07:02.800 --> 00:07:05.399 that and then decides to go forward Second would 00:07:05.399 --> 00:07:07.680 be let me know the options available with the 00:07:07.680 --> 00:07:10.120 pros and cons of each. I will decide what to 00:07:10.120 --> 00:07:13.279 select this keeps you in control, but still giving 00:07:13.279 --> 00:07:18.699 your Delegate or Person that you're assigning 00:07:18.699 --> 00:07:21.459 the task to some freedom where he thinks he's 00:07:21.459 --> 00:07:23.600 in full control, but you're still the one commanding 00:07:23.600 --> 00:07:27.040 the lot the line 3. Let me know the criteria 00:07:27.040 --> 00:07:29.480 for your recommendation, which alternatives you 00:07:29.480 --> 00:07:32.360 have identified, and which one appears best to 00:07:32.360 --> 00:07:34.819 you with any risks identified. I will make the 00:07:34.819 --> 00:07:38.540 decision. Moving even further down the list, 00:07:38.720 --> 00:07:41.759 seeing how you're still retaining a lot of control 00:07:41.759 --> 00:07:43.779 here, but you're still giving him the freedom 00:07:43.779 --> 00:07:47.839 to move. 4. Recommend a course of action for 00:07:47.839 --> 00:07:50.819 my approval. They feel like they have a say, 00:07:50.939 --> 00:07:54.170 they're going to be more happy to... Uh, to do 00:07:54.170 --> 00:07:56.230 whatever it is you're asking them to do. Okay. 00:07:56.449 --> 00:07:59.490 Let me know what you intend to do. Five. Delay 00:07:59.490 --> 00:08:02.389 action until I approve that, though. So we know 00:08:02.389 --> 00:08:05.829 that we're moving forward. Then six. Let me know 00:08:05.829 --> 00:08:08.470 what you intend to do, but don't do it unless 00:08:08.470 --> 00:08:14.790 I say to do it. Okay. Or rather, do it, whatever 00:08:14.790 --> 00:08:17.110 you're intending to do, unless I tell you to 00:08:17.110 --> 00:08:21.509 stop. Okay? Then we move on to seven. I need 00:08:21.509 --> 00:08:23.779 you to take action. Let me know what you did. 00:08:23.819 --> 00:08:27.319 Let me know how it turns out. If they're progressing 00:08:27.319 --> 00:08:30.040 fast and effectively, then we move on to step 00:08:30.040 --> 00:08:33.879 eight. Again, take action. Communicate with me 00:08:33.879 --> 00:08:36.340 only if the action is unsuccessful. This lets 00:08:36.340 --> 00:08:39.200 them know that you trust them, and at the same 00:08:39.200 --> 00:08:42.279 time, it still gives you that feeling of control 00:08:42.279 --> 00:08:45.620 that you wouldn't otherwise have if you had just 00:08:45.620 --> 00:08:47.440 given them the task and said, here, figure it 00:08:47.440 --> 00:08:52.710 out. And then nine, take action. No further communication 00:08:52.710 --> 00:09:00.110 with me is necessary. You know, as such, you're 00:09:00.110 --> 00:09:01.750 just assigning them the complete task. There 00:09:01.750 --> 00:09:05.190 are nine levels, okay? Everybody's going to be 00:09:05.190 --> 00:09:07.070 one of these nine levels. Some people progress 00:09:07.070 --> 00:09:09.250 down the nine levels as they get better and better 00:09:09.250 --> 00:09:11.090 and better with the tasks they're doing. That 00:09:11.090 --> 00:09:14.070 one's rare, but as I said, each one of these 00:09:14.070 --> 00:09:15.929 levels is a different person. Some people are 00:09:15.929 --> 00:09:18.250 more of a hands -free type of person. Some people 00:09:18.250 --> 00:09:20.799 still have some hands -on. Some people... want 00:09:20.799 --> 00:09:28.679 to do almost everything okay at this point it'll 00:09:28.679 --> 00:09:30.759 be immediately apparent that there is a huge 00:09:30.759 --> 00:09:34.620 or rather there is huge potential for problems 00:09:34.620 --> 00:09:37.480 if you want to know exactly what is going on 00:09:37.480 --> 00:09:40.100 but your subordinates has received the message 00:09:40.100 --> 00:09:43.700 that you don't want any further information but 00:09:43.700 --> 00:09:46.379 delegating the work is obviously a lot more complicated 00:09:46.379 --> 00:09:48.139 than it looks at first sight when you consider 00:09:48.139 --> 00:09:51.740 all these different and assignments and things 00:09:51.740 --> 00:09:54.879 that have to be considered, you know, when assigning 00:09:54.879 --> 00:09:57.799 a task to somebody. I just want you all to keep 00:09:57.799 --> 00:09:59.740 that in mind. It's just some stuff to keep in 00:09:59.740 --> 00:10:01.679 mind. There's a lot to consider. There's a lot 00:10:01.679 --> 00:10:04.960 of thoughts or rather a lot of food for thought 00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:08.340 here when it comes down to delegating tasks to 00:10:08.340 --> 00:10:22.929 people. All right, everybody, we're coming into 00:10:22.929 --> 00:10:26.629 the homestretch. Key skills when it comes to 00:10:26.629 --> 00:10:31.090 delegating work that everybody should know, okay? 00:10:31.250 --> 00:10:33.309 From what I've already covered so far, even though 00:10:33.309 --> 00:10:34.549 it's just a little bit, like I said, it's just 00:10:34.549 --> 00:10:36.649 something to keep in mind for you, something 00:10:36.649 --> 00:10:39.009 to think about when you're delegating work. While 00:10:39.009 --> 00:10:42.169 delegating may be complicated, and I mean, you 00:10:42.169 --> 00:10:46.210 can see it's clearly complicated in some aspects 00:10:46.210 --> 00:10:48.490 depending on what you are or the type of person 00:10:48.490 --> 00:10:52.059 you are. There are actually only two principal 00:10:52.059 --> 00:10:55.440 skill areas needed for successful delegation 00:10:55.440 --> 00:11:03.340 of tasks. One, be aware of what level of control 00:11:03.340 --> 00:11:12.360 you want and need, which means which needs higher 00:11:12.360 --> 00:11:14.860 levels of self -awareness and which ones don't. 00:11:15.149 --> 00:11:18.049 Good leaders are intrinsically self -aware and 00:11:18.049 --> 00:11:21.370 understand how they like to work. They understand 00:11:21.370 --> 00:11:25.529 themselves better than other people see them. 00:11:25.730 --> 00:11:29.009 And this goes hand -in -hand with emotional intelligence, 00:11:29.110 --> 00:11:33.070 which I've covered before. So keep that in mind 00:11:33.070 --> 00:11:34.970 if you're wondering about your self -awareness 00:11:34.970 --> 00:11:38.200 and how to improve that. what i'm saying is the 00:11:38.200 --> 00:11:40.340 best leaders are also aware how their subordinates 00:11:40.340 --> 00:11:42.259 like to work and strive to find a balance between 00:11:42.259 --> 00:11:45.879 the two to allow their subordinates to grow and 00:11:45.879 --> 00:11:48.500 develop in their job and function properly while 00:11:48.500 --> 00:11:52.259 you still remain in control and you know working 00:11:52.259 --> 00:11:54.700 where you're comfortable you can find out how 00:11:54.700 --> 00:11:57.639 much control people like by asking them some 00:11:57.639 --> 00:11:59.940 people will straight up tell you and then negotiating 00:12:00.919 --> 00:12:04.019 negotiating a level of delegation that fits both 00:12:04.019 --> 00:12:05.980 your preferences where you both can be happy. 00:12:06.019 --> 00:12:09.120 Now, while this does offer some compromise, it's 00:12:09.120 --> 00:12:13.779 more comparable. Okay? That way, you end up with 00:12:13.779 --> 00:12:15.919 a win -win situation instead of a lose -lose 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:18.419 situation. Now, if you want to know about negotiation 00:12:18.419 --> 00:12:21.659 skills or what is negotiation, I will cover that 00:12:21.659 --> 00:12:25.100 next time. So, you know, look forward to that. 00:12:26.679 --> 00:12:29.840 Again, that's another thing for another day. 00:12:30.960 --> 00:12:33.740 Moving on to number two, make sure that you are 00:12:33.740 --> 00:12:35.519 absolutely clear with your subordinates what 00:12:35.519 --> 00:12:38.659 level of delegation you have used. This requires 00:12:38.659 --> 00:12:41.299 strong communication skills, though, and as I've 00:12:41.299 --> 00:12:42.820 mentioned before, interpersonal communication 00:12:42.820 --> 00:12:45.899 skills, verbal skills, all of these things are 00:12:45.899 --> 00:12:48.259 important. I've covered them before. Feel free 00:12:48.259 --> 00:12:50.639 to go back and look for those podcasts, you know, 00:12:50.639 --> 00:12:55.659 and listen to them, okay? Delegation is not just 00:12:55.659 --> 00:12:58.860 a work skill, okay? The nine levels of delegation 00:12:58.860 --> 00:13:01.100 work with children as well. For example, you 00:13:01.100 --> 00:13:02.879 might want your children to tidy up their rooms. 00:13:03.139 --> 00:13:05.740 In a level one delegation, you say, please go 00:13:05.740 --> 00:13:08.059 and have a look at your room. Come back and tell 00:13:08.059 --> 00:13:10.720 me how long you think it might take you to tidy 00:13:10.720 --> 00:13:13.779 up. And then I will decide whether you have time 00:13:13.779 --> 00:13:16.779 to do it before school. It doesn't leave the 00:13:16.779 --> 00:13:20.779 child much room to maneuver, but, you know, nor 00:13:20.779 --> 00:13:22.500 does it give them much of a chance to develop 00:13:22.500 --> 00:13:24.639 their own skills and take control of their lives. 00:13:26.080 --> 00:13:28.759 That's definitely something you may not do. In 00:13:28.759 --> 00:13:32.639 a level 6 delegation, you might say, please go 00:13:32.639 --> 00:13:34.059 have a look at your room and come back and tell 00:13:34.059 --> 00:13:37.519 me when you think you might be able to tidy it. 00:13:37.779 --> 00:13:40.919 Once you've told me when you're going to do it, 00:13:40.940 --> 00:13:44.600 I expect you to get on it and do it. You might 00:13:44.600 --> 00:13:47.679 need to remind them later, but... you are reminding 00:13:47.679 --> 00:13:50.080 them about a commitment which they made to you, 00:13:50.220 --> 00:13:52.620 rather than an order you gave to them. And then, 00:13:52.679 --> 00:13:55.100 you know, they, as partners in the task and its 00:13:55.100 --> 00:13:57.860 timing, the control is shared, and they're more 00:13:57.860 --> 00:14:00.720 willing to do it. Even if they still fuss and 00:14:00.720 --> 00:14:04.360 complain, all things considered. But, now looking 00:14:04.360 --> 00:14:07.960 at level 9, okay? In a level 9 delegation, you 00:14:07.960 --> 00:14:10.279 might say, your room really needs tidying, and 00:14:10.279 --> 00:14:12.799 I don't mind when you do it, but it has to be 00:14:12.799 --> 00:14:15.850 tidy by the time you go away at... You know, 00:14:15.870 --> 00:14:18.350 on the weekend. I'm probably a teenager at this 00:14:18.350 --> 00:14:22.350 point or something. Is that okay? You are putting 00:14:22.350 --> 00:14:24.690 a high degree of trust in your child to do as 00:14:24.690 --> 00:14:26.889 you ask. The level of delegation doesn't really 00:14:26.889 --> 00:14:28.629 give you any option to say, have you done it 00:14:28.629 --> 00:14:31.129 yet? Because the answer is not unreasonably. 00:14:32.330 --> 00:14:36.590 It's not, you know, it's likely to be, you said 00:14:36.590 --> 00:14:39.190 you don't mind when I do it. Why are you nagging 00:14:39.190 --> 00:14:41.549 me? You know, and then they're just not going 00:14:41.549 --> 00:14:45.750 to do anything. All right. But like so many skills, 00:14:46.070 --> 00:14:48.190 delegation can be broken down into a relatively 00:14:48.190 --> 00:14:51.149 straightforward set of skills, and in this case, 00:14:51.210 --> 00:14:53.009 communication and self -awareness are the main 00:14:53.009 --> 00:14:57.549 two. However, like many others, it takes a fair 00:14:57.549 --> 00:14:59.230 bit of practice before you're really comfortable 00:14:59.230 --> 00:15:01.149 with doing this, and I want people to understand, 00:15:01.330 --> 00:15:03.690 it doesn't happen overnight. None of these skills 00:15:03.690 --> 00:15:05.769 happen overnight. It's just something to consider 00:15:05.769 --> 00:15:11.279 when working on yourself. To get better, it's 00:15:11.279 --> 00:15:13.779 a good idea to practice consciously using the 00:15:13.779 --> 00:15:15.419 different levels of delegation so that you become 00:15:15.419 --> 00:15:17.700 more familiar with the type of language needed 00:15:17.700 --> 00:15:20.360 for each one and are able to use them comfortably 00:15:20.360 --> 00:15:24.039 so you'll then be able to flex your style and 00:15:24.039 --> 00:15:26.759 fit the task and help the people around you to 00:15:26.759 --> 00:15:30.759 whom you're delegating the task to. Okay? At 00:15:30.759 --> 00:15:33.100 any rate, that's it for today, guys. I hope you 00:15:33.100 --> 00:15:34.279 all enjoy the rest of your day. I hope you all 00:15:34.279 --> 00:15:37.059 enjoy this podcast. This is Neogentrix again 00:15:37.059 --> 00:15:39.330 with Food for Thought Season 2. Hope you enjoy 00:15:39.330 --> 00:15:40.950 the rest of your day. Peace.