Load Profile: The User’s Manual for Your Work Self
Many of my fellow gamer Millennials will tell you that that the instruction booklet – or user’s manual – was one of the best parts of opening up a new video game. When you had to endure the car ride home, or were forced to share the TV with a sibling, or had to wait until after dinner to play, the manual kept your attention sharp, focused, got your brain developing strategies hours before you had to give mouth-to-mouth to the cartridge to get it to function properly. We don’t see these info-packed booklets anymore in today’s video games, but I never forgot those sweet appetizers. In fact, I applied the concept to my professional life and created a User’s Manual for, well, me.
Simply put, a User’s Manual is a document you can create for others to establish who you are, what value you bring to the team, and how best to work with you.
Relationship building is critical to success in the workplace. It can also be uncomfortable, especially if you’re easily exhausted by interacting with others, if you struggle with communication, or if you’re socially anxious (hi, it’s me). You may also work in an environment where you float among multiple teams, or have high turnover, or frequent organizational changes. In a four-year period with a large tech company, I supported nine different executives. Having my User’s Manual served as both a unique way to break the ice at the beginning of a working relationship, and a helpful aid to get down the path to Tuckman’s “norming and performing” team stages more quickly.
What’s in the User’s Manual?
Ultimately, it’s up to you how much or little you include in your manual about yourself. I recommend the following:
Brand/Purpose Statements
A person should be able to pick up your document and know on page one what they’ll learn about you by reading it. If they read nothing else but that first page, they’ll be able to fill in the blank for the statement “This person is ________.”
You could include: your life motto, your core personal values, your favorite quote, some “headline” phrases about you, or a heartfelt mini paragraph about why you do what you do for work.
Communication Preferences
This is a two-parter; how you tend to communicate, and how you prefer people communicate with you. Do you speak directly? Do you prefer to engage with some opening small talk? Are you a fan of the “no hello” for instant messaging?
What You Offer
What are you good at? What were you hired to do, and how will you – specifically you – do it?
Providing these answers up front clarifies your role to your teammates and what they can expect.
What You Need from Others
This is a good place to frame out how you’d like others to interact with you, which is similar to, but more encompassing than, your communication preferences. For example, do you need ample lead time to work on requests? What time zone are you in, and what are your working hours? This is a solid spot to communicate your boundaries.
What You Value in a ______
Tailor this part to your audience. What do you value in a leader? In a colleague? In a client or customer? This tells the people you’ll team up with what you respect in a working relationship. You could mention a leader that trusts their team to work with minimal supervision, or team members that are punctual to one-on-one meetings.
Take Away Slide/Page
If people only keep one piece of your User’s Manual, make it the Take Away slide or page.
You could include: your contact information and preferences (e.g. instant message first, then email, then text/call), and some single-line sentences reiterating your most prudent pieces of information from your Manual.
When to use the Manual
There’s never a “bad” time to bring out your User’s Manual, and as a side note, it’s a living document. I recommend updating your Manual at least once or twice a year. I’ve shared my Manual in many situations, and here are three where I found it particularly helpful:
When joining an established team. I read a joke that joining a team can feel like being a new character on season five of a show. The User’s Manual can help get everyone through some early-stage social awkwardness.
When assembling a team you’ll lead. You can use what you have in your Manual to drive similar questions to incoming team members: “This is how I communicate, how do you prefer to communicate? What is your preferred working style?” etc.
During late-stage interviews, when you’re speaking with someone you’ll directly be working for or with. Pair it with your resume and career portfolio for an impactful trio.
Think of your User’s Manual as the strategy guide you wish came with every new coworker. Instead of button-mashing your way through misunderstandings, you’re handing people the controls, the map, and the cheat codes to work well with you. The better your party knows your build, the fewer rage-quits in Slack and smoother co-op play you can expect.