Preferring to do everything yourself

What lies behind this preference for you? I can do the job better myself.

• Is this not a self-fulfilling prophecy?
• You convey the impression that no one else is competent so no one tries.
• Have you taken the time to see what each person can and cannot do?
• Have you invested time in developing them?
• Would this be a useful investment of your time?
• What would be the payoff for you?

• How well is what you enjoy doing aligned with the the needs of your customers/stakeholders?
• Or do you emphasize what you like to do?
• Could you add more value by doing some things you don't like doing so much?
• What should be your decision criteria?
• Are you developing yourself by doing only what you most enjoy doing and are probably already excellent at.

• The things that take too much time are those we don't much want to do.
• You may not see the full benefits of delegation.
• Or you have concerns that lead you to avoid it.
• Can you see time to delegate as an investmet with a payoff for you in more time for other things?
• Can you articulate any other concerns you have and devise a way to address them?

• To what extent is this anxiety-based?
• Can you pinpoint why you are anxious?
• Does your boss demand immediate answers?
• How could you manage your boss's expectations?
• Will getting everything right in the short-term make you look good longer term if you lose sight of the bigger picture?
• What might fall through the cracks if you continue to try to do everything?

• Do you apologize for asking more of them?
• Do you position extra tasks as a chore?
• Why not as a development opportunity for them?
• Do you know what sorts of things they would see as development opportunities?
• Busy people find time to do interesting things.
• This will only work if you delegate developmental tasks rather than routine jobs.

• You identify with the content of your job more than the process of getting it done.
• Managers focus on the process, enabling others to do the content.
• Is your confidence based more on content knowledge than process skills?
• Which is likely to become obsolete sooner?
• Are you fighting a losing battle?

• Are you caught in a vicious circle?
• You take too much ownership to prove yourself, so others blame you when things go wrong.
• The way out is to spread ownership, manage expectations of stakeholders, don't keep it all on your shoulders.
• Find out what level of slippage they will tolerate.
• Warn them early of likely issues.
• Involve them in finding solutions.