how to delegate to a sales assistant

The ability to delegate effectively is one of the keys to successful leadership.� Whether you are trying to manage�a multi-million dollar company or a family, the degree to which you can effectively engage others to carry out tasks is a good indicator of how successful you'll be.�One of the biggest obstacles to delegating isn't necessarily motivating others, though, it's communicating accurately what needs to�be done.� Anytime you have a project in your head that needs to be�shared�with someone else, there is�a chance that either you won't explain it well or that they won't understand it.� Fear of this miscommunication, and its attendant headaches, prevents�many of us from�attepting to delegate in the first place.� This is why so many people try to do everything themselves, or simply�don't take action on their ideas which would require outside help.�One simple and powerful tool to prevent miscommunication when delegating is to have�the delegatee�repeat back the task.��After you assign the�work�to someone, ask�the person (or persons) to repeat what they think they are supposed to do - the activity, the result, the deadline,�the reasoning.� It can be as simple as:"I just want to make sure that I did a good job of communicating what the task is.� Could you run through what you think needs to be done - and what results we want to see."That's it.� Very simple, but very powerful.� In the above example, you are not asking them to repeat the information because you don't trust them (which avoids the "I think you are an idiot, so repeat what I want you to do and I'll point out your mistakes" mentality).���You are taking responsibility up front for the integrity of the communication.�Doing this in the beginning of the process takes a little extra time, but it prevents time- and energy-consuming mistakes down the line.� It also heads off the negative feelings that come up when mistakes are made through miscommunication.� It allows everyone to be on�the proverbial "same page".� This way, you can expand your influence without having to do more work yourself - and that's the definition of a great leader.Happy delegating!

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