84 Reasons People Don’t Delegate

Mark all the statements that are at least somewhat true.

1. I have not determined the value of my time.
2. I don’t know what kind of work brings me joy.
3. I don’t know what kind of work frustrates me.
4. I like to feel needed.
5. I feel bad about delegating to my team, because they’re just as overworked as me.
6. It’s unfair to make someone else do tasks that I wouldn’t want to do myself.
7. I can do it better.
8. I can do it faster.
9. I don’t have time to explain how to do my task.
10. I don’t want to lose control.
11. Asking for help is a sign of weakness.
12. I don’t want to delegate myself out of a job.
13. I don’t want to lose tasks I enjoy.
14. Delegation will make my life more complicated.
15. I don’t know how to delegate.
16. I don’t know how to manage people.
17. I don’t know how to prioritize my tasks.
18. If it goes wrong, I’ll be the one left holding the bag.
19. I don’t want to be seen as replaceable.
20. I don’t want to be put out to pasture.
21. I don’t like managing people.
22. I don’t think delegation is important.
23. I need to be involved in everything.
24. I don’t want to be a burden to my team.
25. I enjoy the work. Why should I delegate it?
26. Delegation reduces my own authority. 
27. I don’t know what I’m good at.
28. I haven’t received any training on delegation.
29. I haven’t received any coaching on delegation.
30. I am not good at the clear communication part of delegating.
31. I am a perfectionist.
32. I’m too busy to find the time for this.
33. I don’t want to have power over other people.
34. My way of doing things is too unique.
35. Some tasks just can’t be delegated.
36. I’m not good at confrontation, like if someone does a bad job.
37. I don’t like following up, especially when I might not like what I find.
38. I haven’t mastered my personal productivity yet, so I’m not ready to manage people.
39. I don’t want to be seen as lazy, spoiled, or elitist.
40. I could ruin other people’s lives if I screw this up.
41. I need to figure out how to do each task first (and get good at it) before I can effectively assign it to someone else.
42. I’m not organized enough to handle a team.
43. Who would want to work for me?
44. I’ll be shown up if they do too good a job.
45. If I trust someone with access to my files, systems, passwords, admin access, etc., then they might screw me over.
46. If I find someone who’s really good, they might eventually quit and start their own business… and maybe copy our business model and compete against us too.
47. The person I delegate to will resent me.
48. I’ve been on the receiving end of poor delegation, and I don’t want to inflict that experience on others.
49. I hate micro-managing people.
50. The thought of growing my company seems scary.
51. I might lose flexibility if I build a team.
52. I don’t want to be responsible for other people’s livelihoods.
53. I might screw up and hire the wrong people.
54. It would be really tough if I had to let someone go. 
55. I don’t know how to communicate my expectations.
56. It’s simpler and easier to do everything myself.
57. What if I end up really stressed with too many people to manage?
58. What if I assign more responsibility to someone than they can handle?
59. The timing isn’t right for hiring someone yet. 
60. My direct reports don’t have the same commitment to quality I do.
61. I don’t have anyone to delegate to because I have no direct reports.
62. Other people’s mistakes could cost me a lot of money.
63. If I give my direct report more authority, they might replace me.
64. My direct reports have abilities superior to mine, and I envy them.
65. My people prefer that I make the decisions.
66. My people want to avoid responsibility.
67. I don’t trust my direct reports’ intentions.
68. I don’t trust my direct reports’ abilities.
69. My direct reports lack initiative.
70. Even if I find someone good, they might leave shortly after I hire them.
71. The person I hire won’t care as much or won’t be as motivated as I am.
72. It’s hard to find someone trustworthy and dependable.
73. People just don’t follow directions well.
74. It’s tough to find someone with the right skills, experience, and values.
75. The goals for my job aren’t clear, so how could I make goals clear to someone else?
76. I haven’t clarified the success measures for my job, so how could I measure the success of delegated tasks?
77. The hiring process takes too long.
78. It takes too long to find someone good.
79. How do I know if a complex task was done properly without inspecting all of the steps in fine detail?
80. My systems aren’t good enough that someone else could effectively run them.
81. I’m unclear about the goals and measurables I’m accountable for. I can’t delegate accountability for parts of an unclear thing.
82. What if I’m underpaying or overpaying?
83. What if we run out of money and have to lay people off, especially people who are counting on me?
84. It will take a long time to see positive returns from investing in delegating.

Next Step: Ask your business coach and/or a peer business owner for coaching on items you marked.

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