Our aim at Athena is to give you your time back so you can spend it in the ways that matter most.

In each issue of our newsletter you’ll get unique delegation tips.

The Steve Jobs Decision Paradox

Steve Jobs wore the same outfit every day to reduce decisions.

Black turtleneck. Levi's 501s. New Balance 991s. No variations, no mental energy wasted.

Now imagine if Jobs had asked his assistant every morning:

"Should I wear the turtleneck or the button-down?"

"Sneakers or boots?"

"Is the weather nice enough for short sleeves?"

Sounds ridiculous.

Yet this is exactly how most leaders delegate. They hand off tasks while keeping every decision for themselves.

→ "Email me the vendor proposals, I'll pick one."
→ "Draft the presentation, I'll tell you what to change."

Most people think they're delegating when they're really creating elaborate loops that still require their approval.

Instead, try to transfer the decision, not just the task. Here’s how:

1. Decide the rule once

   • “Any vendor under $20,000 that meets these three criteria—approve it.”

   • “For any domestic trip, book the nonstop that arrives at least three hours before the first commitment.”

2. Give your delegate full authority if the decision fits the rule

   Your assistant (or team lead) now owns the outcome, not just the prep work. You get informed at the end: “Vendor A contract executed - they meet all criteria, $18k.”

This also means, however, that not everything will land exactly the way you would have done it. Even the best assistant will sometimes pick a font you hate or schedule a call at an awkward hour.

That friction is the price of true delegation, and it is still worth paying.

Jobs freed his attention by eliminating wardrobe trivia.

You can free yours by eliminating unnecessary approval loops.

Beyoncé's "Red-Light Rehearsal" Protocol

A tiny red bulb mounted on Beyoncé's downstage monitor holds the secret to flawless world tours.

During full run-throughs, she never stops the music. Instead, when something goes wrong…

She taps a wireless clicker.

Dancers hitting a mark slightly late = click.

Lighting cue off by two beats = click.

Camera angle too shaky = click.

The red light flashes once. Every department head silently notes the timestamp.

After the complete run, her crew gathers at "video village." They scrub directly to each red-light moment.

Beyoncé explains what felt wrong. The relevant team lead confirms and assigns the fix.

Twenty issues get solved in fifteen minutes instead of interrupting rehearsal twenty times.

The genius is in separating signal from solution.

Capture every flaw instantly with minimal friction, then batch all discussion into one focused block.

The primary work stays in uninterrupted flow without leaving feedback in the dust.