How to facilitate a “User Manuals” exercise to improve team collaboration

Has your team done a "user manual" or "here's how to work with me" exercise?

And as I read the manual for a new dishwasher this morning (truth), I'm reflecting on how valuable the user manual is.

No, I don't love reading about my dishwasher. But it does remind me that the user manual is KEY.

In fact, "User Manuals for Working With Me" are getting lots of attention here on LinkedIn.

!! The good news is that this kind of user manual doesn't have to be 100 pages long with small print !!

The key is to be short and sweet, with a focus on the RIGHT kind of info. And if you can make it visual, even better.

So...what should be included?

Here are some of the elements I guide teams through when I facilitate Collaboration Workshops.

*Personal Points of View
- This is a piece of advice that guides how I approach work 
- Fill in the blank - To me, respect looks like...
- Outside of work, this is what's most important to me:

*Working Together
- My preferred way to start a meeting (review the agenda, make small talk, something else?)
- How I prefer to start a project (group brainstorm, silent work time, data, etc.)
- The best way to ask me a "quick question" is...(Slack, Email, Text, etc.)
- In a brainstorm, I often... (ask questions, share tons of ideas, listen, play "devil's advocate", etc.)
- I'm a great person to go to for questions about...(e.g., excel, copywriting, strategy, etc.)

*Growth
- How I like to receive feedback (async, face-to-face, etc.)
- A growth area where feedback would be most useful to me this quarter is...

*Pressure Points
- This is a non-negotiable for me...
- One of the things that frustrates me in a work context is when...
- My preferred way to be contacted in the event of an urgent issue (e.g., phone call, text, Slack, etc.)

***

It's one thing to answer these questions and circulate a Word doc around the team.

It's another entirely to have a group conversation about the alignment/differences.

That's where I can help.

If you're focused on making your team's experience working together more effective, I can help. My Better Collaboration Workshop will open some major doors for you. Drop me a line to see if this is a fit for you.