Pcould be one of the “good resolutions” of 2024: learn to delegate. A real art in which many people, especially women and unfortunately, do not excel. Why delegating is not easy: leaving the reins of the situation to others means trusting and above all stepping aside, which is difficult to accept especially in the family. But delegating is fundamental, especially for the time you gain.
Learning to delegate, why is it so difficult?
At the basis of the difficulty in delegating, there are two levels of problems: the lack of trust in others and control mania. Added to this is a great stigma: asking for help, and therefore delegating, is a form of weakness, of not making it and therefore not being up to it. Especially for women, who therefore do not perceive the request for help as a sign of maturity and awareness. This is a block that involves all sectors, from the professional to the private sector. The result is that the workload, both practical and mental, is always excessive.
«Being reluctant to delegate is mainly connected to the need for control. We become convinced that no one will be able to carry out that task as we would. The reality is that it is exactly like this: delegating means letting go of the expectation that someone else handles things exactly as we would and trusting of the fact that he will be able to find his own way to reach the goal” commented the Dr. Valeria Fiorenza Perris, Psychotherapist and Clinical Director of Unobravo and involved in research on the topic by Everlionline shopping marketplace.
Paradoxically, the brand has highlighted that one of the aspects on which people tend to have more difficulty in delegating is spending: according to research conducted by the marketplace, although 27% of the users interviewed do not like doing this type of shopping at all, the 29% feel anxious about delegating this activityregardless of whether you like it or not. However, if it is true that the 61% who declare themselves in favor of delegating spending, within this figure 19% would always “entrust” their spending to others but 42% would only do so in exceptional cases.
The importance of delegating, at work and in the family
Especially in the professional field, the art of delegating is fundamental, and it is no coincidence that there are many training courses to help the team grow and achieve goals. As experts explain, however, it is very difficult to do so precisely because it is thought that demoting another person means losing power over the situation and no longer having control over it. It is no coincidence that many people, especially in the professional field and with responsibilities, fall into the trap of the so-called ““fake delegations”: they assign a person a task which they then control by doing it all over againsimply because the work wasn’t done the way they would have done it.
A problem that also arises at home. Very often you have undergone so much surgery that you end up “going crazy” without the other person even realizing it. And all this because he didn’t let something go, because he didn’t delegate himself. Learning to do it, in fact, not only frees you from the physical and mental load but above all it helps to empower people in the family, from the partner to the children.
The to-do-list, an important tool in certain cases
But how to learn to delegate: «You should never be ashamed or afraid to recognize and express your tiredness and the anxiety of not being able to keep up with everything. In this sense, it is important stop for a moment and take some space to reflect on the expectations and perception we have of ourselves when, for any reason, we are unable to achieve the objectives we have set for ourselves. This work of reducing expectations is often not easy and requires a path of awareness that allows you to take care of your emotions” explains the expert who continues: “It is also important give yourself the opportunity to set a limit. It’s not always easy to take care of everything, letting go of something can be a way to give voice to our tiredness. It can also represent a turning point and pave the way for a new phase in which activities are planned at a more sustainable pace.”
In this It can be very helpful to make a to-do list. It helps to establish actual priorities and organize time better: «Making a list of all the activities to be carried out throughout the day and week, in fact, is the most effective way to keep track of everything and understand more easily what can possibly be done postpone or delegate. Once made, the list will help establish an order of priority and distinguish urgent activities from important onesbut which can be planned or completed with the help of someone to delegate to, and those that can simply be eliminated” concludes Dr. Perris.
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