Pick a procedure that exists only in your head — something a colleague would need if you were out sick tomorrow. Run the self-interview prompt and answer its questions in quick, casual fragments.
Ten minutes later, you'll have an SOP. Save it where your team can find it, and note the date — when performance-review season arrives, "began building our office procedures library" is going on your list, and this was the day it started.
Prompt Pack: Documents and Decks
I need to create a [DOCUMENT TYPE] for [AUDIENCE] that accomplishes [PURPOSE]. Propose an outline: section headings plus one line each on what they cover. Then list three things documents like this commonly forget to include.
Using the outline above, draft the '[SECTION]' section. Tone: [DESCRIBE]. Under [N] words. Use only the facts I've given you; mark anything you'd need from me as [FILL IN].
Interview me to document a procedure I know well: [PROCESS]. One question at a time. When you have enough, produce a numbered SOP a new employee could follow alone, with sections for 'Before you start,' the steps, and 'Common mistakes.'
Create a slide-by-slide outline for a [LENGTH]-minute presentation on [TOPIC] for [AUDIENCE]. Per slide: a point-making headline (not a label), 2–3 bullets, one speaker note. Max [N] slides. The audience's unspoken question is [QUESTION] — answer it by slide three.
Here's a finished document: [PASTE NON-CONFIDENTIAL DOC]. Repurpose it into: (1) a five-bullet summary for an intranet post, (2) a 100-word announcement email, (3) three slide headlines. Keep all facts identical across versions.
Review this document as a sharp-eyed editor: inconsistent terminology, undefined acronyms, contradicting dates/numbers, steps that assume unexplained knowledge. List each issue and its location. Do not rewrite. [PASTE]
Here's a template our office reuses: [PASTE GENERIC TEMPLATE]. Critique it: what's outdated, unclear, or missing compared to best practice for this document type? Then produce an improved version, with [BRACKETS] preserved.