Many of you know that I am a passionate advocate for understanding the 80/20 principle. I speak at tourism conferences on the topic, I have workshops to help tourism professionals figure out their 80/20 and I write blog posts on this topic fairly frequently. In a nutshell, the 80/20 Principle states that some things are very important, and most things are not that important. Some things happen a lot, and most things happen rarely. Some actions make a big difference, most actions don’t make a difference at all.
The Tourism Industry and the 80/20 rule
I think the 80/20 principle is made for those of us in Tourism. We all work long hours, nights, weekends and holidays. We have limited resources and we are always trying to do more with less. And more importantly, we love what we do so we tend to do it even when we should shut down our work brain and go enjoy our personal life. That’s why I love helping tourism professionals like you see the benefit of doing less and having the same results.
But Delegating is HARD!
One of the changes we talk about in the 80/20 workshop is the need to delegate. Many of you have told me you wish you could catch up on work, and in the same breath tell me you can’t delegate It is a skill that takes some time to learn. But you can do this!
You may have tried to delegate tasks in the past. Perhaps the quality of work wasn’t good enough to suit you so you ended up redoing everything. There’s no sense in delegating tasks in the first place if you know you’ll end up redoing them, right?
Here are three problems you might be using as excuses for not delegating:
- You feel you can do the job better yourself.
- There’s not enough time to train someone else to do the job.
- You feel like you have to redo someone else’s work.
If you’re facing these challenges, perhaps it’s time to look at some strategies you can use to find success in delegating.
Consider using these delegation techniques:
Face the truth.
If you feel you can do the job better yourself, take time to think things through.
- Other people may not do the job the same way you would, but that doesn’t mean they won’t do an adequate job.
- The people on your team may be eager to do a great job and need only your encouragement, rather than for you to take over.
Train your staff.
Perhaps those working with you do need some additional training. This shouldn’t be a reason to do everything yourself.
- Look at the need for additional training as a means to be better prepared in the future. Short-term training now can have a huge pay off later on. If you take the time to train your staff now, they’ll be better prepared for the next project.
There’s no sense in letting pressure for perfection bring you undue stress.
While perfection would be great, it’s usually not expected. One of my business coaches told me to aim for B- work instead of A+ work all the time. It takes some getting used to, but I bet no one but you will notice!
- Give yourself a break. It’s just not possible for you to do everything yourself, nor should you want to.
- Other people can do the work even if you don’t think they’ll do as good a job as you.
Follow a successful plan.
If you’re the head of the team and certain tasks are critical for the success of the project, you may want to do the major work on those. However, more routine tasks could be passed along to other people on the team.
- Delegate the task itself, not the way in which it’s completed.
- Assign tasks based on strengths. Perhaps you could let one person do research, assign converting raw data into a spreadsheet to another person, and designate a good writer to write the rough drafts of the reports.
You can still be in control of the final outcome by pulling all the data together into a solid finished project.
- Require progress reports at specified deadlines over the course of the project. If they’re having problems meeting the deadlines, instead of assuming they’re not going to get the job done, ask them if there’s anything you can do to help them meet the next deadline.
- Expect that your team will do a great job and you won’t be disappointed. People usually rise to our expectations.
- Finally, give praise and positive feedback when the project is finished.
Instead of being a control-freak on your next project, decide now to let go of some of the responsibilities. Look for ways you can use the talents of your co-workers in the future. You may find that working with a team and delegating tasks makes your job much easier and will allow you to work on your most important work – your 20%.
How can I help you succeed in 2020?
- Are you looking to increase your Chinese visitors this year? Yes, the Coronavirus has thrown everything into confusion. But getting prepared for the return of this market will bring you business long term. So check out my China Sales Mission Program, which is just getting started. After this course, you will be ready to reap the benefits of this key market. Click on this link to learn more.
- DMOs: Let’s talk about my Online Training program for your partners! Every month I present on a topic that will help increase your partner’s professionalism and understanding of this industry.
- Looking for help in creating a Strategic Sales plan for your attraction? Reply to this email and let’s chat. I take one new client per quarter and am open the second half of the year. I would love to work with you!
- Hire me to speak at your tourism conference or event. Reply to this email and I will follow up. Have I mentioned that I have set a goal to speak at all 50 State Tourism conferences? Can you refer me to your conference planner? I would appreciate that!
- Schedule a free 15-minute call with me, or schedule a 1-hour call for a more in-depth discussion about your 2020 plans.
- Check out my Free Resources section at The Tourism Pro Academy!