What is Delegate and Elevate?
Delegate and Elevate™ is the EOS® tool that helps leaders identify which activities they should keep doing and which they should delegate. Every leader maps their activities into four quadrants based on two questions: do I love or hate it, and am I great or not great at it? The goal is to spend the majority of your time in the top two quadrants (Love/Great and Like/Good) and delegate the bottom two. EOS teaches that a minimum of 80 percent of your boss-related activities should land in the top two quadrants.
Delegate and Elevate is how leaders free themselves to focus on the work they do best and unlock the next level of growth for their company.
Why Delegate and Elevate exists
As companies grow, the leader becomes the bottleneck. Every founder eventually reaches a point where they are doing the work of five people and none of it well.
The instinct is to work harder. The right answer is to delegate.
But most leaders delegate wrong. They delegate the work they hate most, regardless of whether they are good at it. They keep the work they are good at even when they hate it. They cling to roles they should have given up three years ago.
Delegate and Elevate fixes this by forcing a structured decision. Two questions per activity. Four quadrants. A clear path to freedom.
The four quadrants
Every activity you do falls into one of four quadrants based on two axes:
- Vertical axis: Love it vs. Do not love it
- Horizontal axis: Great at it vs. Not great at it
Quadrant 1: Love and Great
This is your Unique Ability. The work that energizes you and that you do better than almost anyone. The work you would do for free if you could.
Action: Elevate into this quadrant. Spend as much of your time here as possible.
Quadrant 2: Like and Good
You can do these activities well. You enjoy them. They give you satisfaction. You are competent here.
Action: Keep these activities. Along with quadrant 1, this is where you should be spending your time.
Quadrant 3: Do Not Like but Good
You are good at this work, but you hate it. Every hour spent here drains your energy.
Action: Delegate as soon as possible. This is the most common trap for leaders. They hold onto these activities because “no one else can do it as well.” They are wrong. Someone else can do it well enough, and your time is better spent elsewhere.
Quadrant 4: Do Not Like and Not Good
You hate it and you are bad at it. Continuing to do this work is a disservice to everyone.
Action: Delegate immediately. This should be the first to go.
How to map your activities
Step 1: List everything you do
Make a list of every significant activity in your week. Be specific.
Not: “management work.”
Instead: “weekly one-on-ones, hiring interviews, strategic planning, email triage, vendor contracts, operations reviews, sales calls with top prospects.”
Aim for 15 to 30 activities. If you stop before 15, you are not being thorough. If you exceed 30, you are listing tasks instead of activities.
Step 2: Rate each activity on two axes
For each activity, answer:
- Do I love it, like it, not like it, or hate it?
- Am I great at it, good at it, mediocre at it, or bad at it?
Place each activity in one of the four quadrants.
Step 3: Calculate your current time allocation
What percentage of your week goes to each quadrant? Most leaders find they are spending less than 60 percent of their time in the top two quadrants. Some are below 40 percent.
A minimum of 80 percent of your boss-related activities should land in the top two quadrants combined (Love/Great and Like/Good). If most of them do, you probably have the capacity to be a great boss. If not, you may find more satisfaction applying your skills in a role that does not require you to lead and manage others.
That gap, between where you are and 80 percent in the top two, is the problem Delegate and Elevate solves.
Step 4: Plan to delegate the bottom two quadrants
Look at quadrants 3 and 4. Every activity there needs a plan.
- Who will take it on?
- What training do they need?
- When will the handoff happen?
- How will you measure success?
Step 5: Elevate into the top two quadrants
As you delegate, you open up hours. Those hours should go toward quadrants 1 and 2. More of the work you love and are great at. More of the work you like and are good at.
The goal: 80 percent or more of your boss-related activities in the top two quadrants combined.
The 80 percent rule
EOS teaches a specific threshold: a minimum of 80 percent of a leader’s boss-related activities should land in the top two quadrants combined (Love/Great and Like/Good).
This is not 80 percent in quadrant 1 alone. It is 80 percent in quadrants 1 and 2 together.
Why 80 percent? Because below that threshold, the leader is spending too much time on work they hate or work they are not good at. Both drain energy. Both limit the company. When 80 percent of boss-related time is in the top two, the leader has the emotional, intellectual, and physical capacity to be a great boss.
Delegate one thing per quarter
With your Delegate and Elevate tool filled out, the next job is to delegate everything in the bottom two quadrants and elevate yourself to the top two.
EOS teaches a simple rhythm: delegate at least one thing from the bottom two quadrants every 90 days.
Gino Wickman has delegated one thing per quarter for 30 years. Over time, it gets harder because you are offloading only good stuff. That is the point. You are systematically freeing yourself for the work only you can do.
Review your Delegate and Elevate tool every quarter at your Quarterly Pulsing Session. Pick one item from quadrant 3 or 4. Delegate it.
Delegate and Elevate for Visionaries
Visionaries are especially prone to doing work that drains them. They start in the company doing everything because they had to. They keep doing it because the habit is strong. They end up trapped in operational work that belongs with an Integrator™ or a functional leader.
For a Visionary™, Delegate and Elevate usually means:
- Delegate: day-to-day management, operational decisions, tactical execution
- Elevate into: vision, culture, strategic relationships, new ideas, the Five Roles of the Visionary
Delegate and Elevate for Integrators
Integrators are often trapped in tactical firefighting. The work that should be delegated to functional leaders ends up on their plate because “it is faster if I just do it.”
For an Integrator, Delegate and Elevate usually means:
- Delegate: functional execution, specific project management, detailed implementation
- Elevate into: leadership team integration, accountability, LMA™, cascading communication
Common Delegate and Elevate mistakes
- Keeping quadrant 3 activities out of pride. “I am good at this, so I should keep doing it.” Wrong. If you do not love it, it drains you. Delegate it.
- Delegating to the wrong person. The person who takes the handoff must GWC™ the role. A bad handoff makes the delegation fail.
- Rushing the handoff. Delegation without training leads to failure. The new owner needs time, support, and feedback.
- Treating it as a one-time exercise. Delegate and Elevate should be revisited annually. As the company grows, the right activities for you change.
- Confusing delegation with dumping. Delegation means transferring ownership with clarity. Dumping means throwing tasks over the wall. Delegation works. Dumping destroys trust.
How Delegate and Elevate connects to the rest of EOS
- Accountability Chart™. The right structure makes delegation possible.
- GWC. The person you delegate to must GWC the work.
- Visionary and Integrator. Both use Delegate and Elevate to protect their Unique Ability.
- The EOS Life. Delegate and Elevate is the operational path to the EOS Life.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Delegate and Elevate?
Delegate and Elevate is the EOS tool that maps a leader’s activities into four quadrants based on love/hate and great/not great. The goal is to have 80 percent of your boss-related activities in the top two quadrants combined (Love/Great and Like/Good). Delegate everything in the bottom two.
- Love/Great (Unique Ability): the work that energizes you and that you do better than almost anyone. 2. Like/Good: work you enjoy and do well. 3. Don’t Like/Good: you are good at it, but it drains you. Delegate. 4. Don’t Like/Not Good: delegate immediately.
What are the four quadrants?
What percentage of time should a leader spend in the top quadrants?
A minimum of 80 percent in the top two quadrants combined (Love/Great and Like/Good). Below that threshold, the leader is spending too much time on work that drains them or that they are not good at.
How often should I do Delegate and Elevate?
Annually at minimum. Every time the company grows significantly, your activities should shift. Re-map.
What is Unique Ability in EOS?
Unique Ability is a concept created by Dan Sullivan that EOS uses. It is the work you love and do better than almost anyone. Operating in your Unique Ability is what Delegate and Elevate helps you achieve.
Can everyone do Delegate and Elevate?
Yes. Every leader at every level can benefit. The tool works for Visionaries, Integrators, and functional leaders. Anyone whose time is their constraint benefits.
Is Delegate and Elevate trademarked?
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Yes. Delegate and Elevate is a trademark of EOS Worldwide.
Written by EOS Worldwide
Reviewed by Mark O'Donnell, Visionary & CEO, EOS Worldwide
EOS Worldwide is the organization behind the Entrepreneurial Operating System®. Content reflects official EOS® doctrine.