A Leadership Lesson on the Difference Between Delegating and Dumping

Early in my career, fresh out of college, I worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative correspondent. One day I was given an assignment that felt like a promotion to the major leagues: research and write a response to a constituent letter…all by myself.

Now, remember—this was during the last century, before the internet. Research meant physically hunting down information. I spent hours tracking down reports, flipping through thick binders, and making photocopies like a person preparing for a congressional hearing rather than a letter.

If Google had existed, the entire process would have taken about four minutes, and if ChatGPT had existed, it would have taken about four seconds.

Instead, it took most of the afternoon and several Diet Cokes (or was it Tab?).

Fortunately, I wasn’t thrown into the deep end without help. I shadowed an experienced legislative assistant who patiently walked me through how to research the issue and structure the response. I thought she was incredibly smart—like she had some kind of secret legislative encyclopedia stored in her brain. Watching how she worked gave me the confidence to try it myself.

When she handed the assignment to me, she wasn’t just offloading work. She was developing someone who could eventually handle more responsibility.

That’s the difference between delegation and dumping: Delegation is a leadership tool for growth. Dumping is just clearing your to-do list.

If you want to use delegation to develop your team, a few principles help:

• Match tasks to growth. Assign responsibilities that stretch skills without overwhelming.

• Set clear guardrails. Define expectations, authority, and check-in points. Don’t dump and run.

• Provide feedback. Reinforce learning with timely guidance and reflection.

Done well, delegation multiplies capability.

Who could grow if you stepped back?