The problem with delegation is that it can be a slow process, especially in the early stages.  There are always concerns that you will actually end up much busier because you will need to spend additional time coaching and training your colleagues.  However, developing your staff is a vital part of your job which takes courage, patience and skill and in the long run, it will create great benefits for you and your organisation. For example, it will create valuable time for you to concentrate on those areas that are really business critical, it will motivate your staff and help them to take responsibility and it will also satisfy you on a personal level, seeing your staff grow and develop.

A great way to delegate appropriately is by knowing your people; once you truly know your people, it will help you to identify what to delegate and to whom. Make a list of all the things you can & cannot delegate, then identify the skills your team already has and match them against the tasks you would like to delegate. This way will also help you to create an individual development plan, knowing what skills already exist and what else needs to be learnt to enable your staff to do a specific job. Make people aware of your own standards and what is expected of them but be aware that mistakes do happen – it’s only natural and your colleagues will still need your support. Let go and teach your people to take responsibility.

You can learn much more about delegation in our Essential Management Skills open course which will give you a greater insight into how to handle any potential challenges and if you need any informal advice on this subject, please get in touch with me and I will be happy to help.

Marina Wirkner
marina@phoenix-training.co.uk

Time Management is a part of everybody’s life, both personal & professional. Below are some great quotes relating to Time Management which I hope you find thought provoking:

• “Time is the scarcest resource of the manager; If it is not managed, nothing else can be managed.” (Peter Drucker)
• “Time equals Life, Therefore, waste your time and waste of your life, or master your time and master your life.” (Alan Lakein)
• “I get up every morning determined to both change the world and to have one hell of a good time. Sometimes, this makes planning the day difficult.” (E.B. White)
• “Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs.” (Henry Ford)
• “The few things that work fantastically well should be identified, cultivated, nurtured, and multiplied.” (Richard Koch)
• “Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least.” (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe)
• “This loving person is a person who abhors waste–waste of time, waste of human potential. How much time we waste. As if we were going to live forever.” (Leo Buscaglia)
• “We live in deeds, not years; In thoughts not breaths; In feelings, not in figures on a dial. We should count time by heart throbs …” (Aristotle)
• “Guard well your spare moments. They are like uncut diamonds. Discard them and their value will never be known. Improve them and they will become the brightest gems in a useful life.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
• “Many people fail in life, not for lack of ability or brains or even courage but simply because they have never organized their energies around a goal.” (Elbert Hubbard)
• “A man who dares to waste one hour of life has not discovered the value of life.” (Charles Darwin)
• “Do something every day that you don’t want to do; this is the golden rule for acquiring the habit of doing your duty without pain.” (Mark Twain)
• “Don’t start your day until you have it finished on paper first.” (Jim Rohn)
• “We think much more about the use of money, which is renewable, than we do about the use of time, which is irreplaceable” (J.L Servan-Schreiber)
• “As far as we are able to discover, no one, on their death bed, vowed “I wish I’d spent more time at work” (Rob Parsons)
• “If you have someone who is good in a crisis, get rid of them, otherwise you’ll always have one” (Anon.)
• “And remember that time waits for no one. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery.  Today is a gift.  That’s why it’s called the present.” (Anon)

Image by baby-tooth via Flickr

One of the real secrets of business success is the ability to be well organised. Don’t be fooled by those that say it’s possible to achieve great things in business without being organised. The best leaders and those who leverage the effects of others to best effect are those who are best organised. So here are some top tips to ensure that you are organised to maximize the effect you have in business.

• Separate tasks by importance and timescale. Those tasks which are both important and urgent should always be done first and before those tasks which are simply important or simply urgent.
• Use your diary to schedule tasks as well as meetings. Most people just use a diary for meetings but the best use it to also schedule those urgent and important tasks and ensure that they get done.
• Set clear goals. Without these, how will you know when you have succeeded? The goals should be clear, unambiguous and visible. Take a moment each day to reinforce the goals you have and also to make sure that each task you complete moves you closer to achieving at least one goal. If you take an action that does not move you closer to achieving a goal then ask yourself why you took such action. It’s probable that you have wasted effort.
• Schedule quiet time. Depending on when you perform your best work, early or late in the day, and ensure that you are in the office before or after most people. This is quiet time which makes it the most valuable time to do important work. There are likely to be no interruptions, phones ringing or emergencies that demand your attention. Use this time wisely.

If you follow the above four points consistently and regularly then you find that you have more time which in turn will mean more opportunity to make a difference to your business.

Ever wondered why some people succeed and others don’t, despite them apparently having similar abilities and experience? The difference is likely to be that one understands the secret of time management and the other does not. It’s an obvious fact that everyone has the same amount of time available but here are six tips to manage that time to maximise success.

Tip #1 – Work to your internal clock

Some people work best in the morning whilst others don’t get going until the afternoon. Understand which type you are and do the hardest tasks at your best time.

Tip #2 – Prioritise effectively

Separate the important and the urgent, and do those tasks which are both urgent and important first. Leave any other tasks, since they will get done if time permits.

Tip #3 – Take time to be visible

Make sure you are seen regularly by senior decision makers, even if only to say hello. You need to be a familiar face before anything else and if you get the chance to discuss an issue then don’t be shy – go for it!

Tip #4 – Schedule tasks and not just meetings

Most people just schedule meetings, but if you schedule time to do specific tasks, particularly those which are urgent and important, then you will find you achieve and deliver far more than you currently do.

Tip #5 – Present your ideas to senior management

Take time to develop your ideas to improve the business. If you can demonstrate a proven ability to improve the bottom line then you will progress quickly.

Tip #6 – Stop working all the time and start thinking

Everyone thinks that working hard is the secret of success but there is a better way. Take time out to think deeply about the issues that your business faces and develop ideas to deal with these issues. There are plenty of worker bees, the really successful are those that think outside the box and solve problems by leveraging the effects of others.