Much as we may grumble about our colleagues, they’re there for a reason.  Your company or department’s workload is too much for one person.  Sometimes, you’ll even get a direct report or two (or even a whole group) to help manage the never-ending stream of tasks.  Because there are only so many hours in a day, it makes sense to hand off as many assignments as possible.  However, many managers resist delegating tasks even if they are in danger of drowning.  Some reasons include:

• As the senior team member, you’ll do a better job because you know the subject matter and the company’s resources inside and out.
• It’s easier and less time-consuming to do the task yourself than to explain the assignment to your report.
• You’re afraid your report will screw up the assignment and it will reflect badly on you.
• Your boss likes to micromanage, so you don’t want to lose control over the process.
• You like doing a particular task and don’t want to give it up.

Tempting as it may be to hoard your work, if you really want your team to be successful you have to figure out a way to properly leverage your reports’ contributions.  Let go of keeping them chained to simple tasks like Internet research or bearing over their desks during every phase of a project.  Instead, invest some time with each new report upfront so that he can learn the skills and gain the knowledge necessary to become a self-sufficient, fully-functioning member of the team.   Give your reports initial guidance based on your years of experience, and then allow them to approach projects with their own style, using their unique strengths.  It’s the only way they’ll learn, and actually be of real assistance to you.

What’s that famous proverb?  Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day, but teach a man to fish and he’ll eat for a lifetime!