Taking on the Work of Others
Let’s face it. Women are often busy doing the grunt work while men spend more time building their careers. We have a problem with taking on too much responsibility and it limits us from doing what needs to be done to advance our own careers and take care of ourselves.
No only do we do our own work, but we also take on the work of others. We have difficulty saying “no”. As a result, we are often overwhelmed and stressed.
When a direct report comes to you with a project and they tell you they don’t have time or they don’t know how to do it. What do you do? Do you take it on because it will get done faster if you do it? Do you allow your direct reports to delegate up?
Instead of automatically assuming responsibility for something new, perhaps it’s best to pause a few minutes and think through what other possible options exist.
Perhaps your direct report can work with a co-worker on this project?
Maybe you can use this as a teaching opportunity. If you invest the time now, you won’t have to address the same issue in the future.
What do you do when a peer tries to delegate to you inappropriately?
The important message here is to stop and think about potential ways to manage the issue and also to learn how to say “no” when appropriate. Stop yourself before you launch into solving the problem for someone else. Just apologize and say “no”. “I’d love to help you out with this, but I have way too much on my plate right now.”
Sound good? Try it next time someone tries to delegate a project inappropriately to you and you will eventually feel less stressed, more in control of your own work and career.
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3 Responses to “Taking on the Work of Others”
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Oooh this is a good one! I can see it in my own life, even though I don’t currently have any direct reports. I think it happens in all our areas of life… if we let it.
Learning to say no is the best skill to cultivate. :)
Going along these lines, I find outsourcing can be one of the biggest favours you can do for yourself, even if at the time it seems like a hassle having to train someone. It’s worth the extra effort.
Amanda
Coaching for career, business and personal success
Amanda,
Outsourcing can be a great way to unload extra work. The challenge I find with clients is that they don’t want to take the time to train someone else and then it ends up that they hold on to too much work when it would be much more efficient to take the time in the short term to delegate or outsource.