Many of us share the frustration that when we delegate, the outcome often misses the mark. One really simple and quick exercise I assign to my clients is to have them practice delegating to ChatGPT.
Delegating to ChatGPT helps you refine your instructions and provides instant feedback on where you can improve.
The Problem with Vague Delegation
For example, asking ChatGPT for a “summary of recycling trends” will give a broad overview, but not what you’re truly looking for. The same happens when you don’t provide enough context when delegating to your team.
Get Specific — But About the Right Things
Instead of vague requests, or worse — too many details about how to do the task — instead, provide more detail related to the context of the ask, the expected outcome, the purpose of the result, and what it’s going to be used for.
For example, a prompt like this:
“I’m a Director at a Canadian packaging company preparing for a Board presentation. We’re considering increasing recycled content in packaging (currently at 30%). The Board cares about financial and shareholder risk, upcoming regulations, competitor trends, and industry standards. Our main market is Ontario but use other geographical areas if appropriate. Please provide a five page summary that highlights these points with 5-7 recommendations for next steps. Some case studies or competitor examples would be useful. The goal is for the Board to approve a study and allocate $50,000 for a consultant.”
With this level of detail, you’ll get a focused, actionable response. If it’s off, you can adjust quickly and learn where your instructions need work.
The fun thing about delegating to ChatGPT is that you immediately see if the report and recommendations are generic, if they miss the mark entirely, or if they are missing important considerations.
The more you do this, the better you’ll get at delegating everything.
The Key Lesson
Too often, we delegate with too many details about how to do the task and not enough about the what and why.
By providing context, purpose, and clear outcomes, you’ll get results that align with your needs. Better delegation leads to better outcomes—and it’s a skill worth mastering.
