No matter how successful you are, no matter how quickly your company grows, one of the roles you will have to take on eventually is to let someone go.
For me, this was one of the hardest things to do. I resolutely hated the night before and felt *** for days after, no matter how right or necessary it was. I still find it hard, but I’ve developed some tactics to help me make this moment the best I can, both for the recipient and myself.
I’m writing this not to tell you those tactics (reach out to me and we can arrange a call if you want to know more) but instead to talk about another key premise of success … Self Truth.
I talk a lot about understanding your superpowers, making sure you stay on offense not defence, play to your strengths etc but you also need to ask yourself 1 key question, and do it regularly:
“What am I not good at”
This one question can be profound and lead you to some key insights into your psyche. Armed with that list, follow the below process.
1. Is this something I need to continue to do? If yes, look for outside help. Either a mentor, a manager or coach can help you devise tactics to overcome your obstacles. If no …
2. Is this something I can delegate within the organisation? If yes, then work out how you will still own the outcome even if you don’t own the action. PS. By “delegate” we’re not talking about direct reports … believe it or not delegation does not infer seniority! It might be a task better suited for a partner, boss or employee. If no …
3. Is this something I can outsource? If yes, then get on it as soon as possible! There is no reward in keeping ownership of something you don’t enjoy and aren’t very good at … you and your business will be much better off if someone else is at the helm.
Some personal examples are as follows:
A. Letting someone go. I refuse to give this to someone else … if you’re a leader you most likely feel the same way. Therefore I worked it through with a Mentor to develop a skillset up to the task.
B. Social Media Management. I love posting and sharing, but the detail behind managing likes, sharing and paid advertising isn’t my strength. This therefore sits with someone else in the team who reports back on a weekly basis so I can keep ownership of the outcome.
C. Graphic and Visual Design. I would love to say I’m good at this but its not true. (doesn’t everyone think they’re a designer after all!) This gets outsourced so I can scale up and down as demand dictates.
Hopefully you can see this is a hugely positive process. By identifying your weaknesses you can put tactics in place to counter them and keep you executing where you’re strong. Often people shy away from this process as they don’t have the courage to face up to it. I understand that mentality, but just remember that simply admitting to your weaknesses makes you stronger and more capable.PETER SWAINDECEMBER 27, 2019