The Art of Delegation: Mastering the Power of Asking for Help How Embracing 'B/O' Can Lead to Greater Efficiency, Better Health, and More Fulfillment
I'm a bit OCD when it comes to setting holiday tables, so the family has stopped asking me if they can do that. And while I would prefer to cook everything that sits on the Thanksgiving table, I have learned that allowing family to chip in means I can enjoy watching the parade in the morning and sharing appetizers with everyone in the afternoon - which is much more what the holiday is about rather than finishing exhausted and aching. We all need help in one segment of our life or another, and often the biggest obstacle for many of us is asking for it; which can be for many reasons: we like doing things ourselves, we worry it won't be done the same as we would do it, we don't want to seem unable to do our tasks. But really, asking for help isn't any of that. In fact, by asking for help, we are ensuring we shine. Years ago, in my late twenties, I was having lunch with a colleague and he noticed the palms of my hands had calluses on them. I told him I had been raking leaves, to which he wrote on a napkin B/O. When I looked up inquisitively, he said, "By others". It was a lesson I've used throughout my life. When people ask me how I get so much done, I often remark that busy people always find ways to get things accomplished, but the other part of that remark is that I have lots of people that help me. And to that point, one of my favorite opening sentences may be, "Can you do me a favor..."
There's another side of trying to do everything ourselves without asking for help - it doesn't always work out so well. If we are stressed or rushed, things get missed. If we work ourselves to near death, we often lower our immune system and wind up under the weather. And very often when we don't ask for help, other things, equally as important, don't get accomplished. B/O is for work as much as it is for our personal lives. The higher you climb on the corporate ladder, the more you will find that having people to help you is essential for being an effective leader. Surround yourself with individuals that are reliable, have good worth ethics, show an attention for detail, and that you trust. These colleagues will help you grow your circle of influence by allowing you to have the time to create and execute new plans. Steve Jobs said, "It is really clear that the most precious resources we all have is time" - a potent quote considering his short 56 years with us. B/O gives us some of that as well - by finding others that can help, we have more time for ourselves. And B/O doesn't mean taking advantage of other people; it means finding those who are willing and wanting to help, or, in some cases, paying those who can assist, so we can move on to the things that we need to do, and, more importantly, want to do.
Page 64 I HOSPITALITY NEWS JUNE
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