The "soft goods" section of your desk manual separates the Wheat from the Chafe when it comes to communication of information. Most of us have little bits of information that help us excel. Little secrets we've learned that cause people to tell us how wonderful we are.

Things like knowing bossie likes two sugars in his coffee or that Ted in Sales can't stand to have calls forwarded to him without them being announced first. Most of these things come with experience, and most of us are often afraid to give up that little bit of information for fear that "just anyone could do my job, if they know everything I know!". However sharing this type of information can make the difference between you, the working professional, having a successful time off or chaos.

Create a basic running list and call it "Things you might find helpful", include those running items that are useful in your busy day, BUT avoid personal statements, you'll see why later on.

For instance a proper "soft goods" entry might be: Announce all calls into the Sales Department.

Never "Ted gets really upset if you don't announce his phone calls". Remember, you are communicating how you do your job, this is a professional document and may well be viewed by lots of people when you're away! So keep it simple, and keep it on as professional level as possible, however don't leave out that "special touch" you give your daily duties.

Consider this scenario. You've entered a contest at Deskdemon and won a fabulous trip to Paris for the week. Bossie's none too pleased that you'll be gone for a week, but he gives in and authorizes the time off for you and brings in a temp.

If she performs well, had most of the answers at hand, will it be easier to get time off if you should need it again? You bet! Is your position diminished in any way by leaving the information for another individual to provide useful support for your employer? A resounding NO!

AND a well-written desk manual says you have Bossie's ( and therefore your company's ) best interests at heart. Letting someone know bossie likes two sugars, or that the corporate standard for font at your company is Arial 12 pt, isn't going to cost you your job, having bossie get no coffee at all, and forcing him to answer simple routine questions about daily operations, is a SURE way to communicate that you're the only one with all the answers, not a good thing from management's point of view!