Delegating is a great skill to have as a leader, as it eases your workload, allows you to focus on the essential tasks at hand, and passes other jobs onto the person most suited for them. It is also a fantastic way to empowering your teams by building trust and communication.
Unfortunately, it is a difficult skill to learn, especially for entrepreneurs with ADHD. Successfully delegating requires you to effectively communicate and set realistic goals, both of which are skills that people with ADHD can struggle with. Our brains run 3-4 times faster than everyone else’s, so it is easy for us to assume people know what we are talking about when in reality we lost them several sentences back.
Additionally, people with ADHD don’t want to hand over tasks they love, nor are they particularly good at asking for help. However, there are some ways to make delegating easier for the ADHD brain, and here’s how.
Automate Processes
Delegating to people can trigger all sorts of internal conflict in the ADHD brain. What if they say no? What if they don’t do it the way I want? Isn’t it too difficult for me to explain what needs to be done?
If you’re having problems with this, try automating the process instead by delegating to technology. This is a great way to help you first get over the feeling that it should be you that does everything and reaffirms that it is okay to ask for help. Delegating to technology usually works best for monotonous and repetitive tasks, which is fantastic, as these are often the ones we don’t want to deal with anyway.
Prepare Good Instructions
Once you have seen the benefits of delegating, you can transition to delegating to people, be that your subordinates, superiors, or simply friends and family. But this requires good communication, and so having comprehensive instructions is key to success. Many people rush the instructions, but dedicating proper time towards them means that tasks are completed correctly the first time around, saving you both time and effort in the long run. For a person with ADHD, this also effectively combats communication difficulties.
When preparing instructions, clearly write down the task and the end goal, how you personally complete the process, which other parties are involved, and how long it typically takes. Mind-maps may also make it easier for you to visualise the task at hand.
Once you’re done with the instructions, send them to the person you’re delegating to and ask for their thoughts. Is the timescale realistic? Does the process make sense? Would you do anything differently? By working together to form instructions that make sense, you can feel assured that the job will be completed successfully, relieving yourself of pressure and building a better relationship with your team.
