How To Avoid The Delegation Apology Trap

"Look, I'm sorry to have to ask you to take this on, I know it's not your usual area and probably isn't the most exciting thing to come your way, but I don't have much of a choice." Susan grimaced as she finished speaking.

Susan has fallen into the delegation apology trap. Like many leaders, she feels uncomfortable delegating to peers or even the more experienced members of her own team. That discomfort can show up as this confusing and demotivating tendency to apologize for, effectively, doing your job.

Reading and Leading the Room

Many talented, experienced professionals find it's difficult to be themselves when faced with the task of presenting to a room full of more senior leaders. A common mistake some presenters make is to let their audience, or a vocal subset of the audience, essentially drive the discussion. As if, because they are more senior, they know better where the discussion should go.

Let's question that belief.

Do Anger and Fear Have a Place at Work?

Do Anger and Fear Have a Place at Work?

If only I didn’t have this horrible feeling in my gut every time I think of updating the committee on this project. Why am I such a wimp?

Whether you’ve had exactly that thought or not, managing our emotions in professional life can be a significant source of difficulty. For some leaders, unregulated emotions are the main limitation on their upward trajectory.

Unplug the DJ in Your Head

Unplug the DJ in Your Head

We worry because, deep down we believe this behavior is accomplishing something.

In other words, we believe in magic. Constructive problem solving, is, of course, a useful exercise. That’s not what we’re talking about. We are talking about the proliferation of repeating thoughts, sensations and emotions about “our problem” that we play over and over again in our heads like a demented DJ.