The math problem managers fail

1 afternoon + context = freedom × forever

For many years, I was a team of one.

From strategy to planning to execution, it was all me.

I remember how stoked I was when leadership granted me headcount. I was so tired of fighting with the systems and coordinating logistics, and I was REALLY tired of working every night.

Rebecca was my dream employee. She had experience in the system we used and quickly integrated into the rest of the department with her quick wit and calm demeanor.

Yet I hesitated to turn things over.

I’d been doing these things for so long. I knew the history. I knew how to get around the quirks in the system. I had all the context. And the thought of how long it would take to explain it all pre-emptively exhausted me.

Something's gotta give.

I quickly saw that Rebecca was hungry to learn her new job - and that my reluctance to let go was dimming some of her enthusiasm.

So I started showing her how I pulled reports, arranged training classes, and coordinated schedules.

And was amazed at how quickly she picked it all up. And started doing things faster - and better - than I ever had.

So - time well spent.

If you find yourself hanging onto things you should let go, treat it like a math problem.

Let’s say you have a weekly task that normally take you 90 minutes to complete. What would it take to hand it off completely?

• 90 minutes to show them how you do it, end-to-end. Maybe an extra 10 to allow for questions while you do it.

• 120 minutes to let them do it with you there to help and answer questions

• Maybe another cumulative hour or so of questions the first few times they do it themselves.

Let’s call it 4.5 – 5 hours you’ve invested. To get back 90 minutes a week ever after.

I’m no math whiz, but to me – that’s a no-brainer.

Rebecca took a ton of work off my plate - and showed me what I had been missing: space to think bigger, and time to act on it. All I had to do was get out of her way - and mine.