No matter how much confidence you have in the person you're entrusting a task to, I think there's a crucial element to delegating that's often forgotten. There has to be a framework in place of where and who to go to if they get stuck and need help. I know, as a manager, I'm used to dealing with tasks all by myself, but when I'm delegating to juniors, I always remind myself that not everybody is as independent as me. If you've ever delegated to someone else and spent more time on the task than if you'd done it yourself, then it's time to review where you're going wrong. If your motivation for delegating is thinking that the other person can do it better than you, or it'll free you up to do something else,that's great. But delegation isn't an easy way out, so if you're just being lazy or the task seems too small to concern yourself with, always do it yourself. Once you've selected someone to delegate a task to - assuming you do have a choice of personnel-there's something you need to do that's too important to leave till the job's finished. It's a mistake if you don't make it clear to staff what they're doing well and what they could improve on.Some managers think it's a form of interfering and doesn't give people space to get on with the job, but I find some constructive suggestions are usually helpful. When you give someone a task to do, there's not much point in simply listing the particular difficulties involved in carrying it out. You really need to check they understand what challenges they can expect to face and how they might deal with them. So you should sit down with them and explore possible solutions. If they simply say 'I understand', it's not a guarantee that they do. Once you become an effective delegator, you'll be talked about by those who see what you and your team can achieve. And, as for team members, well, they'll appreciate the trust you place in them and the support they've received from you. But until you reach that point on the learning curve, keep telling yourself not to give up whenever it doesn't go to plan. I've certainly had some disastrous attempts at delegating in my time.