Joel's notes 6037 notes About these notes

Delegate tasks when possible

Planted January 2026

Part of § My productivity system.

Some tasks can be delegated rather than done myself.

Who can take tasks

  • Buffer team — work tasks to direct reports and colleagues
  • Marika (house manager) — home maintenance, cleaning, supplies
  • AI agents — research, analysis, drafting

Tracking delegated tasks

Use the delegated label in Todoist. This functions like GTD's "Waiting For" — review during weekly review to follow up on status.

Marika-specific pattern

For recurring home tasks delegated to Marika, use "Verify:" prefix:

  • "Verify: Clean humidifiers" instead of "Clean humidifiers"
  • Reminds me to confirm it happened, not do it myself
  • Still keeps the task on my radar without me doing the work

Identifying delegation opportunities

When processing tasks, ask: Could someone else handle this?

  • Buffer work → team member
  • Home/personal → Marika
  • Research/drafting → AI

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