Managers who are also perfectionists often find delegating tasks difficult. No one seems to meet their expectations and standards. They love to do everything themselves, because who else can finish tasks without disappointing them?

A study shows that CEOs who can delegate well receive 33% greater revenue compared to CEOs who can’t. And of course, those who can delegate also suffer less burnout and exhaustion.

So, if you’re a perfectionist manager, let’s learn how to delegate and truly accept to do so without excessive doubts.

What's inside this post?

Analyze whether doing everything yourself is worth it

Build trust

Delegate small tasks first

Accept imperfections

Allow for autonomy and flexibility

There’s no need to be a control freak

Analyze whether doing everything yourself is worth it

First of all, you need to analyze whether doing everything yourself is actually worth it. How much time and energy do you have to lose for minor details?

You need to change your perspective toward delegation. It’s hard to focus on important matters when you try to control every detail at work. In fact, some tasks just need to be completed.

Besides, taking on too much work can affect your mental and physical health. You’ll be overwhelmed and exhausted from the battles in your mind and from longer working hours.

In terms of your staff, when you take charge of the smallest tasks, you take away their opportunities to learn and develop new skills.

So, stop controlling and start analyzing how delegation affects you and your staff.

Build trust

Before you shift responsibilities to someone else, you need to trust that person. Otherwise, you’ll always be worried whether the delegated tasks will be done and done properly.

Think of delegation as a test. People who care and who don’t will show. And if you’ve figured out who do, give them the benefit of the doubt and start delegating with less reluctance. The right people, if they feel you trust them, will contribute more than you expect.

Delegate small tasks first

You don’t have to pass the whole big project to someone else’s hands. You can delegate small tasks first until you’re comfortable and trusting enough to delegate.

Some types of tasks that you can delegate:

time-consuming and tedious admin work
has a specific procedure to complete
requires skills you don’t have

Accept imperfections

Not until do you learn to accept imperfections that you can feel relaxed giving tasks to someone else. Not every task needs to be perfectly completed. Sometimes, they just need to be done well enough.

You can always come back to refine a document, tweak a design, or add an app feature later on. What’s the worst that’s gonna happen?

Allow for autonomy and flexibility

Your way of doing things might not be the best one. There might be other better options. If you only think of delegation as making someone do something your way, you may actually hinder task completion.

When you delegate, you don’t have to plan for everything to make sure things go your way. Let your staff figure out the best method to complete delegated tasks. If you’re afraid things may go wrong, you can tell staff to discuss with you before execution.

There’s no need to be a control freak

While being a perfectionist brings more well-refined results, the consequences might be out of your control. You may face mental and physical health issues. Your staff may suffer from the pressure of doing things right. And when everyone’s exhausted and unhappy, work performance and outcomes are affected, too.

If you’re truly a perfectionist, you’ll hesitate even after reading all this. It takes time to change your work habits and mindset. There’s a limit to what you can do, so delegation is necessary before you become your own bottleneck.

Focus on what’s more important and what you’re good at. Waste less time tweaking tiny details or micromanaging your team members. No one loves working with a “you-do-it-my-way” manager. Learn to harness your delegation skill and maintain business performance without sacrificing quality.