Effective delegation is one of those key skills that every pastor must learn…over and over and over. (Unfortunately it’s one that they don’t teach you in seminary.) I have an extended resource on this (see more on that below), but first I want to give you a simple overview of this process and inspire you to get better at this critical skill. Use this summer period to prepare so that you are a better delegator in the fall.
The way that you operate at the highest level of your calling is knowing how to delegate. When we choose men and women we can delegate to, we can get more done, our influence can be expanded, and ultimately the Kingdom can be expanded.
The definition of delegation: “Giving others the authority to act on your behalf.”
Delegation of a task must be accompanied with responsibility (that it gets accomplished) and accountability for those results.
Determine what should be delegated. Look at all that you do and pick three to five things that you’re going to work on delegating. By delegating that responsibility, giving someone else the authority to act on your behalf, you’ll free yourself up to work on higher-level activities.
Exercise: Write down everything that you do every day for two weeks. Ask yourself, “Is this something that only I can do? Or is it something that someone else can do?” You have other people on your team who can help you.
As you grow in ministry, think about the things that only you can do. You’re never going to be able to do only those things, but you can move closer to them.
Write out the process you use to accomplish the tasks you plan to delegate. Maybe it’s an expense report you have with the church, or a mileage reimbursement form. Write out all the steps you use to accomplish that task. Be as detailed as possible. If you don’t do this, you’ll never be able to show another person how to do it. This creates a way for you to hand it off.
Start with a small task and delegate it. The way to learn is to start small. Over time you’ll become a master delegator.
Example: you can’t delegate the leading of evangelism in your church, but you can delegate the reordering of the evangelism cards or new believer books.
Don’t assume that because you don’t like doing something, that someone else won’t like doing it either. Use other people’s spiritual gifts. You’ll discover that with the things you don’t like doing, there’s a staff member or volunteer who would love that task.
Delegation always involves follow-up and evaluation. There’s a difference between delegating to someone and dumping somtething on them. Give them the task with a deadline, then follow up within that timeframe. Once it’s completed, then you can evaluate. How can we do this better? Do you want to keep doing this job in the future?
Caution: There’s no complete delegation without a complete evaluation. You’re never going to be able to give away 100% of the project, because follow-up is needed. You can give away a large portion of the task, but part of it always stays with you.
Your partner in ministry,
Nelson
P.S. Continue your delegation education! Go deeper from a pastor’s perspective by picking up my resource, Secrets to Effective Delegation, where I share the exact process that I use. This ties in with who you are as a pastor: we are to equip others. Click here to learn more and pick up your copy today.
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