Ask the vast majority of managers what their biggest challenges are and you can be certain that having enough time will come pretty high up on their list.

At the same time ask them what they are like when it comes to delegating and chances are they may well be avoiding delegating or just not making the time to do it properly.

As a manager, I am guessing that you want to be successful and delegating is just part of the process of being successful.  So what are the dangers of not delegating?

Danger 1: You become swamped

If you are someone who is not willing to delegate you will sooner or later become completely swamped or overwhelmed.  You no doubt are highly capable otherwise you would not be a manager in the first place.  Yet at the same time you cannot be great at everything.  So if you want to avoid being swamped and do what you do best delegate more.

Danger 2: You alienate your team

Those that you manage probably thrive on having the opportunity to do new things, learn and be challenged.  If you are the manager who just holds on to everything and never gives anyone else the opportunity, sooner or later your team will stop engaging and supporting you.

Danger 3: You miss out on the lowest cost development around

When you delegate you create space to take on new challenges which help you to grow and develop.  The work that you delegate presents an opportunity to those that you manage to grow and develop.  If you don’t delegate you miss out on this low cost development opportunity for both you and your team.

Danger 4: You don’t deliver

Whether you like it or not your success as a manager is measured by the results that you deliver.  If you are trying to do it all by yourself you ultimately won’t deliver results.  The non delivery puts pressure on you which can result in your performance deteriorating even more.

Bottom Line- Delegating is an important element of your management success toolbox.  So what’s stopping you from delegating and what is it costing you in terms of results?