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  What is delegation?

  Delegation is appointing someone else to act on your behalf. Acting on your behalf means that you are assigning the authority and responsibility to another person to carry out certain tasks or activities that you usually do.

  Effective delegation is the most powerful activity in management because it enables you to direct your focus and energy to those activities that are the responsibility of the manager/leader and only you can do.

  Delegation requires trust in the people you are delegating to, and trust is the highest form of human motivation. Sure, this involves more time than doing the task yourself, at least initially, but this is time well invested because you are investing not only in the growth and development of an employee but also in the firm and in yourself.

  When should you consider delegating? The short answer is always if you want to grow the company and yourself, but particularly when the following is evident:
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  • When you reach a point in your business where you are juggling too many balls and you begin to drop them.
  • When you want to free yourself of areas that are not your strengths or which you do not enjoy.
  • When doing certain functions takes away from you doing your job.
  • When you have to deal with time management issues.
  • When you need to create free time to strategize and plan.
  • When you need to reduce the amount of time you are working, not only in hours but days.

  You need to delegate to:

  • Create growth in your organization and/or the company.
  • Protect yourself and the company in case of your incapacity.
  • Contribute to the succession plans of the company. You need to delegate now as much of your functions as possible in order to create value by covering all positions.
  • Reduce stress. If you delegate you will still be responsible, but you won’t have the stress of having to do it all yourself.

  You must realize that your staff isn’t the source of your problems; they are the solution to them. Don’t look at your employees as a time consuming obligation that you have as manager or leader; if you chose your staff carefully and hired the right people, they should be the help that you need to be effective. Your ability to delegate will make the difference.

  How much of your to-do list you could delegate? Dedicate your efforts to identify what you can delegate and what you need to have in order to be able to successfully delegate.
• About The Author
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  Oswald R. Viva is the founder and President of V&A Management, LLC; a consulting company founded in 1985, now dedicated to helping small and midsize businesses. He has over 20 years of top corporate management in large and small companies, including multiple "C" Level positions, 15 years as consultant in high-tech and manufacturing industries worldwide, and eleven years as CEO and executive coach for small and midsize businesses.

  Oswald participated in eight startups either as a Principal and Founder or as a consultant in an acting leadership position, including multiple CEO positions. He was also the owner of one of the most successful franchises of The Alternative Board (TAB). He has served in the Board of Directors of eight entrepreneurial companies in various fields.

  He is the author of “Its Lonely at the Top”; “A Practical Guide to Becoming a Better Leader of Your Small Company” published by iUniversal, September 2011.

  His education includes degrees in Mechanical Engineering and extensive training in Business Administration, Finance and Management. He is a Certified Management Consultant, Coach and Facilitator, a member of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, and a member of the Fortune Business Leaders council. He is the inventor of record in several patents and has received several awards in the management and entrepreneurial field.

  Born in Argentina, he migrated to the US fifty-three years ago. He has been married to the love of his life for fifty-three years and resides in Acworth, GA. He is the father of four and grandfather of twelve.

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