The Association Blog

You don’t need to do it all. In fact, you need to stop yourself from even trying. Here are 3 steps in the right direction

In leadership, we often find ourselves wearing too many hats, especially in the nonprofit sector. But as Raissa Allaire, Tree House Humane Society’s ED and Association Board Member, pointed out during this past summer’s Leadership Summit, you can’t scale your impact if you’re constantly bogged down in the day-to-day tasks that others could handle. Are you brave enough to “fire yourself” from tasks that don’t contribute to long-term success?

Why it matters
When you hold onto tasks that don’t require your unique skills or leadership, you’re not just wasting your time—you’re preventing your team from stepping up. By “firing yourself” from these tasks, you free up your energy for the big-picture thinking that drives real change.

How to do it

• Focus on the strategic, such as building systems, creating sustainability, and developing your team’s leadership potential
  
• Identify tasks that you’re doing out of habit or because you think “no one else can do it”
  
• Delegate these tasks to team members, or automate them where possible

What tasks are you holding onto? If you’ve already fired yourself from low-value tasks, please share your experience.