Wouldn’t an extra hour or two feel great today?  Think of what you might accomplish.  You could make progress with an important project.  Polish your presentation. Attend that networking event. Enjoy dinner with family or friends. Take that spinning class. Or sit on the sofa with your cat.

Delegation helps you create time that you can use as you choose.  Here are 3 ways to delegate more, and more effectively.

• First, decide what to delegate.  For example, choose tasks that others can and should do because these tasks don’t make the best use of your time or talent.  Having someone else do administrative work, like inputting data or researching information you need for a larger project, frees you up for more important work.  Let someone else curate information from an Internet search rather than spending hours sifting through thousands of search results, looking for relevant content.
• Select the right person for the task.  Consider the person’s skill set, likes, development needs, and their track record for getting the job done.  Maybe they’re someone you already are or are considering mentoring.  Agree on milestones and checkpoints.  Follow up, provide feedback and coaching.  This not only opens up your calendar, it’s also a great training opportunity for someone interested in working their way up the corporate ladder. 
• Let go of your inner control freak.  Allow others to get the job done in their way.  That “no one can do it as well as me” attitude will take you only so far.  If the person goes completely off the rails, don’t take the project away.  Get them back on track with feedback, coaching and training. 

As far as your own career goes, successfully developing and managing people demonstrates your ability to direct a team toward a goal and impact the bottom line.  That’s something every company wants in their leaders.