Twitter Summary: If you’re in charge, do you find yourself working in your organization or leading it?
Principle
Michael Gerber in his book The E-Myth explains that one of the many reasons small business fail in their infancy is because some owners unintentionally abdicate vs delegate work responsibilities. Instead of delegating a portion of the business, providing clear guidance, and remaining involved, they often assign it to someone else, remove themselves completely from that portion of the business so as to focus on the actual work being done. They struggle to know the difference between owning a business and working in a business. Gerber says this is more a result of just not knowing how to do the work of an owner/manager than it is intentional negligence.
In Gerber’s own words he explains a scenario between Sarah the owner and Elizabeth the new hire:
In short, Sarah trusted Elizabeth blindly. Sarah simply wanted to believe in Elizabeth. It was easier that way. Because if Sarah trusted blindly, if Sarah simply left it all up to chance, Sarah wouldn’t be forced to do the work she didn’t want to do. The work of coming to agreement about what her relationship with Elizabeth was about. What role each of them was there to play. What it meant for Sarah to be an owner and Elizabeth to be her employee. What it meant for Sarah to set out the rules of the game that she was expecting Elizabeth to play.
Because Sarah didn’t feel comfortable in this new role, this role of the owner, this role of the Entrepreneur, this role of a businessperson, she left everything up to chance. She abdicated her accountability as an owner and took the role of just another employee. She avoided fully participating in her relationship with Elizabeth, and, in the process, created a dynamic between herself and her employee built on a weak structure. An omission that foretold Elizabeth’s inevitable departure and Sarah’s inevitable pain.
Abdicate vs Delegate and Making Connections
I think most people don’t have it all figured out. So I feel Gerber nailed it when he wrote, “…Sarah didn’t feel comfortable in this new role…[so] she left everything up to chance.” The majority of us are doing the best we can and sometimes it’s just easier to focus on what we know or what we can do well and hope the rest will take care of itself. But just because we don’t know exactly what we’re doing doesn’t mean we can’t be successful as leaders of others.
I think the difference between someone who abdicates their role as an owner (or leader) and someone who delegates it is a sincere concern for the success of others. If we are preoccupied with the success of not just the organization but with the success of our people, it becomes difficult to leave others rudderless, without guidance or direction. It becomes hard to ignore the problems we leave in our wake or the frustrations we cause. If we are abdicating, we are likely being a bit selfish and self-centered because we ignore the problems we’re causing. But if we are delegating, not only are we promoting a successful organization but we are also demonstrating an genuine value of people.
So What?
Do some self-evaluation. Are you abdicating your role and leaving others rudderless, without guidance, and blindly hoping for their success? Or are you effectively delegating? If you are delegating, good on you and keep it up. If not, apologize to those you’ve affected and figure out how to best reinsert yourself into the organization as a true leader/owner should; providing clear guidance, expectations, recognizing your responsibility as the leader/owner, and expecting accountability.
If you find yourself on the receiving end of the abdication, don’t let your shoulders droop. I’ve found that regardless of ones position, you can always positively influence a group or organization. Don’t exacerbate the problem by contributing to a negative atmosphere, figure out how to negate the effects of abdication by promoting an environment where delegation could flourish.
Next Weeks Post: Build a business that works without you by creating systems. It’s not about you, it’s about systems! One of the paradigm shifting principles I found from The E-Myth.
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