The stereotypical confident managers will often just do everything themselves because they believe no one else can do their work better than themselves. As a matter of fact, it is true.

But how do we reconcile our egos and need for control and autonomy with our need to work in the most cost-effective, efficient and timely manner?

A different approach doesn’t necessarily mean a worse approach.

Therefore, most of the times, it is a reason to delegate, otherwise, you will end up doing the same tasks all over again, which does not bring you value and you will miss the chance to learn something new from seeing how someone else goes about solving a problem.

It is worth asking yourself why you resist giving up the task?

Do you enjoy it?

Does it give you praise or recognition?

Be honest with yourself.

Admittedly, at times, delegation can be time-consuming. However, if you keep doing everything yourself, you will slowly sink under  mountain of work, which will affect your performance badly. 

Start by finding out where your time actually goes to be sure you make good use of your time and work efficiently. Find answers to those three questions:

1. What am I doing that does not need to be done at all?
2. What am I doing that can be done by somebody else?
3. What am I doing that only I can do?

If, however, you believe that your team really does lack the ability to do much of what you would delegate to them, then you might be overlooking an important part of your role as a leader, which is talent management.

It’s your job to build a strong team of capable people. It’s your job to make sure that they are able to fulfill the demands of their positions. It’s your job to give people stretch assignments that will enable them to develop and grow.