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But I’ll Be Giving Up Power!

Giving up power is one of the common barriers to good delegation—and it is the most irrational. Refusing to delegate actually makes you powerless.

Power does not come from hoarding the work. In fact, thinking you can do it all, and acting along those lines, fails to show that you can lead. And if you’re a manager, you’re expected to lead.

True power in leadership doesn’t come from personally accomplishing the work. It comes from your ability to develop your staff and motivate them to achieve strategic ends. It comes from aligning people’s capabilities with the tasks at hand, and using work opportunities to build their confidence, project after project.

When you think of delegation, think of a ship captain. Rarely does the captain row the boat. His job is to see out across the horizon, set the course, and ensure the boat is moving in the right direction toward the charted destination.

It is not the power behind the oars or the ship’s wheel that gets the boat to where it is supposed to go. It is the thinking and discipline—the leadership—that makes it happen.