Write the manual for how you work best — your energy, triggers, communication style, and non-negotiables — to share with a manager, team, or partner (or to know yourself). Use when asked to write my user manual, how I work best, a working-with-me guide, or help my team understand me. Produces a clear one-pager covering how you communicate, when you're at your best, what drains you, how you like feedback, and your non-negotiables — turning invisible friction into stated expectations, so people can work with you instead of around you.
Start a fresh conversation. Replace the highlighted placeholders.
Use personal-operating-manual to write a concise one-page working-with-me guide for [audience] based on [work style, energy, friction points, and feedback preference] and [non-negotiables].
Required inputs
[audience]
[work style, energy, friction points, and feedback preference]
[non-negotiables]
User-approved starter prompt based on a pinned source version; check current skill requirements before running. Task evidence ↗
SKILL.md
name: personal-operating-manualdescription: "Write the manual for how you work best — your energy, triggers, communication style, and non-negotiables — to share with a manager, team, or partner (or to know yourself). Use when asked to write my user manual, how I work best, a working-with-me guide, or help my team understand me. Produces a clear one-pager covering how you communicate, when you're at your best, what drains you, how you like feedback, and your non-negotiables — turning invisible friction into stated expectations, so people can work with you instead of around you."
Personal Operating Manual
Half of workplace and relationship friction is unspoken mismatch — you need quiet mornings, they schedule 9am calls; you want direct feedback, they hint. A "how to work with me" manual makes the invisible explicit. This writes yours: how you communicate, when you're at your best, what drains you, how you like feedback, and your hard lines — so people can adapt to how you actually work instead of guessing.
What This Skill Produces
How I communicate — your preferred channels, response speed, and style (direct vs. warm, written vs. talk-it-out)
When I'm at my best — your energy windows and the conditions for your best work
What drains me — the things that wreck your focus or energy (context-switching, surprise meetings, ambiguity)
How I like feedback — direct, private, written, immediate — however it actually lands well for you
My non-negotiables — the few hard lines (protected focus time, no weekend messages, whatever's real)
How to get the best from me — the practical "if you do X, I'll deliver Y"
Required Inputs
Ask for these if not provided:
The audience — a manager, a whole team, a partner, or just for yourself
How you work best — your conditions, energy, and style (drawn out if needed)
Your friction points — where mismatches keep happening
Feedback preference — how criticism actually lands well for you
Your non-negotiables — the genuine hard lines
Framework: Make The Invisible Explicit
Cover the high-friction areas. Communication, energy/best-conditions, drains, feedback, and non-negotiables — these are where unspoken mismatch causes the most friction.
Be specific and honest. "I need 2 hours of uninterrupted morning focus" beats "I like focus" — specifics let people actually adapt.
Frame as enabling, not demanding. Present preferences as "here's how to get the best from me," not a list of complaints or rules.
Distinguish preferences from non-negotiables. Most items are "nice if"; a few are genuine hard lines — separate them so the real ones carry weight.
Keep it a one-pager. Short enough to actually read and remember; this is a quick reference, not an autobiography.
Output Format
How to work with me — [for audience]
How I communicate: [channels · speed · style].
I'm at my best when: [energy windows + conditions].
What drains me: [the focus/energy killers].
How I like feedback: [direct/private/written/etc.].
My non-negotiables: [the few real hard lines].
Get the best from me: [practical "if X then Y"].
Quality Checks
Covers the high-friction areas (comms, energy, drains, feedback, non-negotiables)
Items are specific and actionable, not vague
Framed as enabling, not demanding
Separates preferences from genuine non-negotiables
Fits on one readable page
Tuned to the intended audience
Anti-Patterns
Vague preferences no one can act on.
A list of demands rather than an enabling guide.
Everything as a "non-negotiable" — diluting the real ones.
An autobiography instead of a one-pager.
Example Trigger Phrases
"Write my 'how to work with me' guide for my new team."
"Help me make a user manual for myself."
"My manager should know how I work best — help me put it in writing."
"A working-with-me guide for my partner about how I operate."
"Help me articulate my non-negotiables and work style."