At a certain point, your biggest risk at work is becoming the bottleneck.
What you should be doing:
- Building strategy
- Spotting errors in your team’s work
- Asking the questions no one else will
What you’re actually doing:
- Pulling the same reports
- Taking notes like an intern
- Rebuilding sloppy decks
- Cleaning up messes someone else should already own
And the worst part?
You’ve convinced yourself it’s faster this way.
That you’re the only one who can do it “right.”
The inability to delegate is slowing you down and it’s costing you your actual job.
The one they hired you to do.
Because the truth is you’re under-leveraged.
And deep down, you know why:
- You’re afraid someone else will miss the deadline.
- You’re afraid they’ll do it badly and it’ll reflect on you.
- You’re afraid that letting go means you couldn’t handle it.
So you hold on.
To tasks.
To projects.
To relevance
Until the role you wanted gets buried under the one you refuse to release.
Ask yourself:
- What am I still doing that blocks the work I was actually hired to do?
- Where am I stepping in because it’s “easy” and I can do it better, instead of letting my capable team handle it?
- What am I avoiding because it’s uncomfortable, unfamiliar, or exposes me?
Because here’s the trap:
Without leaning into the highest-leverage use of your time, you’ll spend another quarter being indispensable, instead of impactful.
This ritual is the break point.
A chance to focus on the person you’re supposed to become and make peace with what’s no longer yours to do.
What You Do
Block 45 minutes.
You’re not delegating today.
You’re auditing what shouldn’t be yours anymore and starting the unhook.
This is how you stop working two jobs:
- The one you’re paid for.
- The one you’re too afraid to let go of.
Step 1: Find the Drift
Ask yourself:
“If someone shadowed me for a full week, what job would they think I have?”
Now compare that to:
- The title in your email signature
- Or the role you actually want next
Write down:
- 3 tasks you’re still doing that belong to your past role.
- 1 responsibility you want to be doing but can’t, because you’re too deep in the weeds.
A gap means you’re focused on the wrong activities.
Step 2: Name the Fear
For each task you’re gripping, ask:
- Why haven’t I let this go?
- What am I actually afraid will happen if I do?
Be specific. Be brutal.
This is where the audit takes off.
Step 3: Identify the Blocker
What’s actually in the way of handing it off?
- Skill gap? Teach it.
- Process gap? Build it.
- Trust gap? Lead through it.
If the answer is “they’re not ready,” ask yourself:
Is that their limitation or your avoidance of discomfort?
Step 4: Draft the Shift
Pick one task and write the first move toward letting it go:
- Draft a doc outline
- Record a walkthrough
- Book a prep session with your team
- Build a system around the thing you’ve been hoarding
When you’re ready, walk your team through what success looks like.
Wrap-Up
Working nights and weekends isn’t leadership.
Freeing up your time to do the work that actually moves the business forward is.
Level up your team.
Build systems that run without you.
And with that, you can reclaim your time, your spark, and your way forward.