Good documentation begins with a reader and a task—not a feature list.
Name the audience
Choose one primary reader. Record their goal, context, prior knowledge, and constraints before you outline.
Design for the moment
A reader troubleshooting an outage needs a different sequence than someone learning a concept. Put the action or answer they need first.
Practice prompt
Put it into practice
Write a four-line reader profile for a document you use at work. Remove anything that does not change a writing decision.
Before you move on
- One primary reader is named
- Their task is observable
- Required knowledge is explicit