The truth?

I dream of Scott and Abbie using only one word to describe me – Indispensable.

As such, you can imagine my horror (Yes, horror. A second word Abbie and Scott would use to describe me would be “Dramatic”) when I saw Harvey Mackay’s recent column discussing how good managers need to know when to delegate. “The most successful managers aim at making themselves unnecessary to their staff,” McKay advises.

Uh-oh.

Call me crazy, but isn’t unnecessary the exact opposite of indispensable?

Talk about a detour out of my comfort zone. And yet, I am going for it.

So, today I ask for advice – what is delegation? How does one delegate successfully? How does one avoid micromanaging? How can one go from handling day-to-day tasks to “scanning the horizon, studying the industry and our company’s future,” as Mackay describes it?

Some tips from Mackay to get the ideas flowing, as paraphrased by moi:

• Explain yourself! Learn how to give simple yet complete instructions rather than telling others how to do things exactly like you.
• Get over yourself! You are not the only one who can do this job – establish expectations, standards and walk away.
• Come back! After you walk away, be sure to check back in and offer constructive advice.