Coach Colin and The Alternative Board

𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝗱𝗼 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀.

They struggle because nobody has agreed on how the decision will be made.

One person feels the leader must decide.

Another thinks the decision must be unanimous.

Someone else is just happy to go with the majority (as long as they don’t have to do any work).

The result is often a long meeting, unclear authority and frustration when the final decision does not match expectations. There is a danger here of Group Think and a risk of valid voices not being heard.

After I facilitated a recent team tough conversation about structuring a department, one of the take aways was:

“𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮, 𝘯𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩.”

The lesson here is, not every decision needs the same rule.

Some decisions need speed.

Some need input from all, but final decision rests with the accountable person.

Some need broad commitment.

Before discussing the options, agree on the decision rule.

That one step can save time, reduce conflict and make accountability much clearer.

If you want an Aligned Team that makes better decisions, let’s have coffee. That’s an easy decision - unless you want lots of options, then we’ll go to Seattle.

“There’s no way I can delegate that!”
Why not? Does it defy the laws of physics?

𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝟭: 𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.
𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝟮: 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆.

This is where many managers become nervous.

“What if they get it wrong?”

Then you remain accountable. That is why delegation needs guardrails, agreed authority and review points.

You can make someone responsible for completing the task. You can also give them authority to make certain decisions.

But if your signature goes on the final result, accountability remains with you. That means you must review the work. It does not mean you should quietly correct everything yourself.

Give it back. Let them understand the mistake, correct it and learn from it.

To decide what can be delegated, make a list of everything that lands on your desk during a month. Then assess each task against three areas:

𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱: Could it affect trust, reputation or key relationships?
𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆: What financial value, decision rights or system access are involved?
𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗸: Are there legal, safety, security or compliance consequences?

The lower the risk, the easier the task is to delegate.
The higher the risk, the stronger the guardrails and check-ins need to be.

And when you hear yourself say, “I cannot delegate the whole task,” ask:

What part of it can I delegate?

They may not have full system access, but can they work under supervision? Can they complete everything up to the point where your authority is required?

Delegation does not always mean handing over the entire task.
Sometimes it starts with the smallest responsible piece.

𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 - 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲.

𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲 - 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲



A recuring conversation that I have with overwhelmed Business Owners, Founders and CEO's is the sticky question of delegation. And actually it's an often misunderstood process.



𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲

It frees up your time. Really, what better reason do you want than that?

It allows you to focus on the things you 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴, and the activities that have the highest potential impact on the business.



Ok here's the other main reason - Delegation is the most effective tool we have to build capable teams. Not the easiest - that title belongs to classroom training (the fire and forget missile of workplace learning).



It seems so obvious, why don't we do more of it?



𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁

It's not easy. It is an emotional exercise - It conjures up fears, worries and judgment.

It also requires intentional and full engagement from us from the setup, to the engagement, to the final feedback. And that "takes time".



We have to let go of control - that's scary.

We worry that "it won't be perfect"

We justify to ourselves that delegation would create more work, delay, or confusion than completing the task yourself.



Some of these may well be justified. Until you break that thinking, you'll always be stuck in the problem loop of:



"I don't have time"

"There's no one strong enough to delegate to "

"I have to do everything"

"I don't have time"



So within the delegation process allow me to show you how we build in control measures to soften those concerns. I'll post more in the coming days.

If you want to have a competent team, have coffee with me Colin Carmody.

I guide Overwhelmed and Frustrated Business Owners and their Management Team from Chaos to Clarity & Control using the Business Builders Blueprint™

Improve Your Business - Change Your Life.

You have a systems and process problem. And 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗻𝗼 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵.

Those two words get used interchangeably, but they're not the same thing.

Think about taking a flight to a Tropical Island ... (well why not?)

A 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 is everything that makes a safe flight possible. It includes the aircraft, the pilots, the ground crew, maintenance schedules, the flight plan etc.

A 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 is the step-by-step procedure the pilot follows before take-off. To assist the pilot there is a checklist that must be followed. One of many in the whole system.

The process is a cog in the machine.

Business works exactly the same way.

A system is the complete setup that helps your business produce a consistent result. It includes your people, technology, tools, policies and processes.

A process is simply the sequence of steps for completing one task.

If your team skips a step, you have a 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺.

If your team never had the right tools, training or accountability to follow the process in the first place, you have a 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺.

𝘔𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦.

They struggle because they're asking good people to work inside weak systems with no documented processes.

The visual below breaks down the key differences between systems and processes.

Have coffee with me Coach Colin and The Alternative Board We'll build the SOPs that help your business run while you sip 𝗠𝗮𝗶 𝗧𝗮𝗶'𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘂𝘀.

There are really only four things every business must do well.

It surprises me how many business owners avoid the first two... and often neglect the last one.

𝟭. 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀.

If people don't know you exist, they can't buy from you. Business doesn't fall from the sky on the wings of hope.

𝟮. 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗹.

Conversations are great. Quotes are better. But a signed purchase order keeps the lights on.

𝟯. 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿.

Make the thing. Do the things. Solve customers problems - This is where most business owners are at their best and most comfortable.

𝟰. 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆.

Know your numbers. Manage your cash flow. Understand your margins. Keep your eyes on it or your eyes will be filled with tears (not the happy kind).

Each of these should be supported by a system.

A marketing system that consistently creates opportunities.

A sales system that converts opportunities into customers.

A delivery system that produces quality, every time and becomes scalable.

A financial system that gives you confidence in your decisions.

Once those foundations are in place, you can build the next layer of systems: People Management, Customer Management, and Leadership & Planning.

But it all starts with four fundamentals:

𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁. 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗹. 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿. 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆.

I also have a system - 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲™ It's a practical framework that helps business owners build the systems that create consistency, reduce dependence on the owner, and make the business easier to lead.

If you'd like more control over how your business runs, let's have coffee.

Messages like this mean a great deal.

Lyn Hobson founder of KAROO Kersbos won the Most Unique Product category at this year’s annual Heritage Ram Sale, with FNB sponsoring her business coaching as part of the prize.

It has been a privilege to support her as she builds the business with greater clarity and direction.

Go and see what makes Karoo Kersbos so unique:
KAROO Kersbos

𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨.
𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬.

You becomes the bottleneck.
The team waits for answers.
Communication gets messy.
Standards slip.

And what once felt like progress starts feeling like pressure.

𝗡𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸, 𝗜’𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗻:
𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 - 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘁

This is a practical conversation for business owners and leadership teams who want growth, but not chaos.

If your business is growing, or trying to grow, this is worth being in the room for.

Register here: https://lnkd.in/dzSiq-jY

Last week I heard a business partner stand up and speak about his fellow partner and friend.

It was a milestone moment.

But what stood out to me was not just the celebration.

It was the reflection on what good business partnership really means and I love how he phrased it. It resonated.

In business, we often talk about strategy, sales, margins, growth and targets.

And yes, those things matter.

But behind every good business are people carrying pressure together.

People who have sat through tough conversations.

People who have made difficult decisions.

People who have disagreed, challenged each other, and still chosen to stay committed to the bigger picture.

𝗜 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀.

They bring different strengths.

They respect each other’s view.

They say the hard thing when it needs to be said.

They carry the load when the other person is tired.

They keep coming back to what is best for the business.

𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴.

Where ego gets in the way.

Where trust breaks down.

Where silence replaces honesty.

Where different opinions become personal battles instead of better decisions.

The difference is massive.

A real partnership is not two people thinking the same way.

It is two people committed to the same goal.

It is trust, patience, honesty, resilience and shared responsibility.

That speech reminded me that businesses are not built by strategy alone.

They are built through sacrifice, consistency, difficult conversations, late nights, early mornings, mistakes, lessons, and the courage to keep going together.

So perhaps the reflection for business owners is this:

Who is really carrying the load with you?

Do you share the same Vision, Values and Goals?

“Whoever asks the questions does the leading, because they set the context.”
John C. Maxwell

Business owners are often very good at solving problems. But in leadership, it can also become a blind spot.

Read about asking better questions in my latest newsletter. I write about the lessons, mindset, skillset, and activity needed in Leadership.

Are you helping people think, or are you doing the thinking? | Colin Carmody “Whoever asks the questions does the leading, because they set the context.” John C. Maxwell Business owners are often very good at solving problems. But in leadership, it can also become a blind spot. Read about asking better questions in my latest newsletter. I write about the lessons, mindset...

That phrase stood out to me:

𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗱 - Thank you Don.

Business coaching should not be vague.

It should help a business owner get clearer on:

👉What matters most.

👉Where the business is going.

👉What needs to change.

👉What action comes next.

Purpose and direction are not just nice words.

They are practical tools.

They help owners make better decisions, lead their teams with more confidence, and stop feeling like everything depends on them alone.

THAT IS THE WORK I ENJOY MOST.

Helping business owners move from noise and overwhelm to clarity and action.

Want more purpose and direction in your business?

Have coffee with me Colin Carmody