The Steps of Successful Delegation

1. Define the task

Confirm in your own mind that the task is suitable to be delegated. Does it meet the criteria for delegating?

2. Select the individual or team

What are your reasons for delegating to this person or team? What are they
going to get out of it? What are you going to get out of it?

3. Assess ability and training needs

Is the other person or people capable of doing the task? Do they understand what needs to be done. If not, you can't delegate.

4. Explain the reasons

You must explain why the job or responsibility is being delegated. And why to that person or people? What is its importance and relevance? Where does it fit in the overall scheme of things?

5. State required results

What must be achieved? Clarify understanding by getting feedback from the other person. How will the task be measured? Make sure they know how you intend to decide that the job is being successfully done.

6. Consider resources required

Discuss and agree what is required to get the job done. Consider people, location, premises, equipment, money, materials, other related activities and services.

7. Agree deadlines

When must the job be finished? Or if an ongoing duty, when are the review dates? When are the reports due? And if the task is complex and has parts or stages, what are the priorities?
At this point you may need to confirm understanding with the other person of the previous points, getting ideas and interpretation. As well as showing you that the job can be done, this helps to reinforce commitment.
Methods of checking and controlling must be agreed with the other person. Failing to agree this in advance will cause this monitoring to seem like interference or lack of trust.

8. Support and communicate

Think about who else needs to know what's going on, and inform them. Involve the other person in considering this so they can see beyond the issue at hand. Do not leave the person to inform your own peers of their new responsibility. Warn the person about any awkward matters of politics or protocol. Inform your own boss if the task is important, and of sufficient profile.

9. Feedback on results

It is essential to let the person know how they are doing, and whether they have achieved their aims. If not, you must review with them why things did not go to plan, and deal with the problems. You must absorb the consequences of failure, and pass on the credit for success.

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Three Ways to Work Smarter

The Endless To-Do List

Three Ways to Work Smarter

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Your inbox is overflowing. You have three different to-do lists, including one on your mobile device. Not to mention the one in your head. Dread is creeping in and wrecking what used to be a job you were passionate about. It’s time to make some changes.
“Most of your dread doesn’t come from the work itself. It comes from how you think about the work,” says Jason Womack, a workplace performance expert, executive coach and author of Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More . “The psychological weight of unfinished tasks and unmade decisions is huge. There is a constant feeling of pressure to do more with less. You can’t change that reality… but you can make peace with it.”
First, Womack says, you’ve got to accept that you are never going to get it all done. The to-do list is updated daily. Instead, try giving yourself the satisfaction of a job well-done with these work-smart tips:

• Time blocking and prioritization. Look at your to-do list, figure out where you have blocks of time to act on those items and then prioritize. “I keep my defined ‘work’ actions to 15 to 30 minutes each,” Womack says. “These are the chunks of time I can use to stay focused, minimize interruptions and work effectively.”
• Take technology shortcuts by setting up a Microsoft Office rule that sorts incoming emails to specific folders. Or keep your current projects in a cloud folder so they’re accessible on the go. If you don’t know how, ask someone who’s tech-savvy to help.
• Figure out what distracts you. Identify what is blocking your ability to give all of your attention to what needs your attention. Is it the constant ding of emails? Mute the alert sound. Is it employees or colleagues who need “just a minute” of your time? Block off visitation hours. Once you know the triggers, you can begin to make subtle changes so that you wind up getting more done.

Leaders Care

Connecting with People

Connecting with People: By Dr. John C. Maxwell

As a train's source of energy and direction, the locomotive plays a vital role. However, unless a locomotive connects to other cars on the track, it is relatively useless. A train's value comes from its ability to transport massive amounts of cargo, and doing so requires the locomotive to link up with dozens of freight cars. Traveling by itself, a locomotive would arrive at its destination empty-handed. In that case, its journey would be nothing more than a waste of fuel.

Leaders are like locomotives in that they're blessed with drive, energy, and vision. However, until leaders learn the art of connection, their influence remains minimal. In isolation, their talents accomplish little, and their efforts are squandered.

Let's look at practical ways whereby leaders can make meaningful connections with others.

8 Steps for Connecting with People

#1 Don't Take People for Granted

Weak leaders get so caught up in the vision of where they're going that they forget whom they're trying to lead. Instead, leaders would be wise realize that connecting to people and developing them are the surest ways to gain influence. Results happen through relationships.

#2 Possess a Difference-Maker Mindset

A hesitant and indecisive leader doesn't enliven the hearts or imaginations of people. On the contrary, leaders who influence and inspire have a difference-maker mindset. They connect with others by passing along an infectious confidence in their ability to succeed.

#3 Initiate Movement Toward People

Freight cars sitting on the railroad tracks won't go anywhere by themselves. They will rust and collect dust unless a locomotive makes contact and connects to them. Similarly, most people stay parked due to self-doubt, fear, or absence of vision. It takes the connection of a leader to tap into their potential and rouse them to action.

 

#4 Search for Common Ground

Anytime you want to connect with a person, the starting point should be shared interests. If you're attentive to the hobbies, histories, and habits of those you lead, then you will find ample areas of common ground. Launch out from these areas of agreement to build rapport.

#5 Recognize and Respect Differences

We are capable of finding common ground with others, but at the same time we need to acknowledge that we're all different. The greatest influencers realize that differences ought to complement rather than clash. When you demonstrate regard for diverse personalities and meet people on their terms, they will appreciate your sensitivity and connect with the understanding you've shown.

#6 Learn the Key to Others' Lives

People have core motivations that vary drastically, and a leader has to discern them to forge a connection with others. Generally, the key can be unearthed by examining what a person has already done in life and by discovering what he or she aspires to do in the future. Once you've found the key, do not exploit it. Turn the key only when you have the person's permission, and always use it for his or her benefit - not your own.

 #7 Communicate from the Heart

Nothing repels people like a phony leader. Be authentic when you speak, and align your actions and words. People respond to passion, and they will latch onto a vision when it's communicated directly from the heart.

#8 Share Common Experiences

Shared experiences cement a relationship. For this reason, it's wise to be intentional about eating out with teammates, inviting them to join you on an errand, or taking in a play or ballgame together. The more time you invest in those you lead, the greater the connection you will forge with them.

Zig Ziglar’s Success Habits: Your Journey to the Top

Zig Ziglar’s Success Habits: Your Journey to the Top

Personal development icon Zig Ziglar told SUCCESS in October 2008, “I’m a constant learner. You need to be a constant student because things change and you have to change and grow. And I emphasize the word grow,” he says. Here are Zig Ziglar’s five habits for your journey to the top:

1. Be a constant leader. Seek out information that you can learn and teach to others.
2. Encourage others and help them get what they want.
3. Express gratitude. “Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions,” Ziglar says “The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for.”
4. Recognize the value of relationships and their role in creating balanced success.
5. Be consistent in your words and actions. “When you make a promise, keep it.”

I have truly learnt a lot from him over the years (videos/audio/ books)still going strong at it , he is the guru in sales and personal development. he has such a great personality on stage and he interacts with you from the 'heart'.