When it comes to delegating, can you guess the one simple mistake you can easily avoid?
Mmm thought not
You see it’s so easy to overcomplicate everything these days that we often overlook the basics.
Anyone can delegate. After all, it’s not hard.
Delegating well, however, is a whole different story!
Imagine you’re in need of a hotel for a business trip.
You call your VA ‘Book me a hotel for tomorrow night in London’
Job done!. Delegated. Off your radar.
Until you arrive at 9 pm and find you’re in a broom cupboard at the wrong end of town and they don’t even serve food that late. You could have got better, for less and with loyalty points on your favourite hotel chain’s card.
Except you forgot to tell your VA all the information.
The one simple mistake.
So how can you delegate better next time?
3 Step Plan to Better Delegation
- Be clear and specific – if you want a double bed and a cooked breakfast, tell your VA. If you need parking or a quiet room or access to a gym, make sure you let them know. A good VA works hard to please their clients but nobody’s a mind reader!
- Expect questions – a good VA will ask relevant questions to make sure they get it right, so see this as a positive – in fact, worry if they never ask you any. Making sure they understand your needs is the key to a successful relationship. Tell them your travel preferences properly the first time and they’ll know for any future bookings – saving you both time and money.
- Give your VA access to your systems and accounts – just think how much time you’d save if travel invoices were saved directly into your Dropbox accounts folder or your travel bookings and references added to your diary. Adding these additional small jobs can really streamline your systems and make life easier.
The Result? You’re now delegating like an expert!
Miscommunication is something that can affect all aspects of your life, never mind your business.
You might think you’re being too direct to say that I want x,y, and z from a hotel room, but most people will appreciate knowing what you want. No mishaps, no frustration, no clients emailing you at 9pm complaining about what you’ve booked (or done) for them.
So the next time you’re busy and want to delegate your next task – Will you ask for what you want, or just expect things to happen as what you’ve imagined in your head?
Credit: Kylie Jones – Advantage Virtual Assistants
