I was working at my desk not long ago when I had the realization that it was so late that I had actually just started the regular work day for my team in Asia. I had been working these US/Asia double shifts for so long that my frustration, with the project and with my team, was rising. However, the team was bewildered by my reaction. They were doing everything I assigned to them. How could I be upset?

What indeed! I had fallen into an all too common trap. While I thought I was delegating, I was actually just assigning tasks and retaining ownership of everything. I needed to make big changes - and fast. I started to look at the times projects worked, seemingly without my intervention and when they didn’t. The solution jumped out clearly. I needed to delegate! Below are the five steps to successful delegation.