Use Clarify to reduce follow up emails when you submit reports
Clarify is for more than just process documentation
If you're only using Clarify to help you make user manuals or to document process flows, then I'm sorry to say that you are underutilizing Clarify. We use it every day when we want to accomplish this one simple goal - Be understood the first time.
Use pictures to clarify your reports
Sometimes we forget that a picture speaks 1000 words. If we really believe that, then why aren't we replacing at least half of what we type in an email, with pictures?
When I worked at an accounting firm, I was the king of writing wordy emails. I loved to write in the details, organize all of my thoughts so that it flowed in a logical manner, and provide follow-up explanations when folks didn't hang on my every word.
Actually, that last part wasn't so much fun. When people didn't read everything that I wrote down, or maybe just misunderstood what I was trying to say, it usually resulted in follow-up discussions. Lots of them. And whether that follow-up discussion happened via phone, in person, or over email, it was always a pain to try and rehash everything.
I noticed that this happened a lot when I tried to explain how I gathered information for a report.
So, after having to provide a lot of follow-up explanations to go along with my "information gathering" emails, I decided that instead of writing everything out, I would Clarify it. I was amazed at how much more effective this was than writing out what I did. The recipient of the email could instantly see whether I gathered information from the right sources, applied the correct filters, and pulled the correct information.
After using Clarify, I noticed that If there were any follow-up discussions, it was usually to discuss the results, which was a much better use of our time.
Next time you have to write an email, remember - pictures speak volumes. Use them!
Jim Sewell
Great point! I love Clarify to show people what I can't say in words and this is a perfect case where pictures are better than words.
Better still, you can store it in your folders/Evernote/etc with the report itself so in 6 weeks when you have totally forgotten the process and someone asks "How did you get this" it's already answered!
It's there for "Monday morning retraining" as well if it's a new process or a change to an old one that you have forgotten a step, just look it up.
Jonathan DeVore
You're absolutely right! Using Clarify saved my bacon more than a few times when somebody asked me, "Where did that number come from? Why did you select that name? Is that date right?"
And that didn't mean that I always got it right, but it was great to be able to show the "boss" exactly where I got the information so he/she could instantly confirm whether I got it right or got it wrong.
Jack Eisenberg
I've been using Screen Steps from the very beginning to do just this kind of documentation. You're absolutely right that it is the BEST way of creating process documentation.
The only downside I've encountered, however, is that to share this work as a PDF file means creating a monstrously huge file; generally too large to attach as an email attachment.
I'm looking forward to seeing whether the latest version of the product has done something to reduce the size of images placed in PDF files.