The positive sum game of delegation

The more value you're delivering, the more others will recognize your efforts. If your goal is to grow in your career, you need to learn to deliver more value to an organization as a whole and people individually.

You can work faster or more efficiently to fit more work in the day. But that's not scalable. Another way to generate more value is to start delegating some work to others.

In game theory, non-zero-sum or positive-sum game that produces a mutually beneficial outcome for two or more parties.

Delegation allows you to scale yourself and help others grow, creating a win-win-win situation.

Your win is an opportunity to lead and mentor

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by transferring your knowledge and experience to others. The more you empower others, the less they rely on you, which gives you time to solve new and impactful problems.

The win for the other person is they get an opportunity to step up and work on a challenging project and perhaps even start making decisions under the guidance of a more experienced person (you). This experience can fill a gap in their career and possibly expose them to other opportunities.

The win for the organization is everyone develops leadership and ownership. When people's careers grow, it benefits the culture, relationships, work, and business.

Next time before you jump on the project that seems right up your alley, stop and think if there's an opportunity to uplevel someone else. Perhaps, an easy project is a sign you're ready for a bigger challenge, and you should start looking for someone to delegate work to you.

Delegation takes time, effort, and patience. Although it may seem like a waste of time, it's a necessary investment for you to generate a time to take on the next big task. Your goal is to provide a safety net for less experienced people to learn and fail in a controlled environment where consequences are moderate.