I have been using the User Manual technique for years. Thank you Quartz (2017) and The New York Times (2013) for introducing me to the concept. It is a one-page document where you force yourself to be self-reflective and honest with those you work with about your strengths and weaknesses.

In recent years, many managers in tech have adopted the practice of writing User Manuals or Read Me documents. In these documents or slide decks, they spell out their strengths, weaknesses, and idiosyncrasies. I highly recommend everyone do this exercise, even if they keep it to themselves. 

It is helpful to self-identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in your own career and day-to-day. While I love the deep introspection some of these document writers produce, my favorite part is the instructions on how these folks work day-to-day, or their idiosyncrasies. 

Fun and Useful Examples

“I am a morning person who only looks at email twice a day.”

“I am a night owl, don’t assume you have to answer my emails outside working hours unless it says urgent in the subject line.”

“I don’t often express joy, it doesn’t mean I am not happy.”

Stress Reducers

Writing these things out takes away soo much stress and speeds up on-ramp timing. I have found most people are thankful that I am willing to share my thoughts. Occasionally, someone shares their user manual in exchange.

Further Reading

There have been some great articles on the topic. I highly recommend clicking here to learn more. Hackernoon shared these creative versions of the concept from 12 engineering managers. The article references a mix of work and slides, some are quite hilarious. 

This article from RAD addresses 7 points to address::

• My Work Style

• What I value

• What I don’t have patience for

• How best to communicate with me

• My typical schedule

• How to help me

• What people misunderstand about me

A Template to Get Started

I shared a lot of different versions in this article, but some people just want a quick starting point. I have put together a template for your use, just create a copy to get started. If you don’t like it (it is too serious and practical for some) try searching for Readme Templates.

Photo by Olia 💙💛 Gozha on Unsplash