Don’t expect people to follow written instructions 📄

Here’s a hard truth about people: they won’t read your instructions, even if the stakes are high, the instructions are clear, and the format is beautiful. That email you carefully wrote? Ignored. That perfectly crafted document? Skimmed at best. It’s because people are overwhelmed, distracted, wired differently, or are just lazy.

Why Written Instructions Are Often Ignored

Cognitive Overload: People are bombarded with emails, messages, and endless to-do lists. Reading detailed instructions often gets lost in the noise.
The “Skim Effect”: Most people don’t read; they scan. They’ll miss them entirely if the critical details aren’t immediately apparent.
Time Pressure: Even when the stakes are high, people may assume they’ll figure it out later—until it’s too late or they forget.
Abstract vs. Tangible: Written instructions often feel abstract compared to a live demonstration or real-time explanation.

How to Ensure Instructions Are Followed

Don’t rely on a document alone if you need people to follow specific instructions.

Create the Documentation: Written instructions are still necessary. They provide a reference point for later and serve as the foundation for your explanation. Keep them short and actionable. Use bullets.
Walk Through It: Hold a call, a meeting, or a screen share session to guide them step by step. Explain the instructions, answer questions, and ensure they understand what to do.
Use Visual Aids: Sometimes, a diagram, flowchart, or quick video can communicate far more effectively than text.
Reiterate Key Points: If you’re dealing with a schedule or an action plan, highlight the most critical tasks and deadlines every week. Send an update on what got done to motivate people to keep working towards the next milestone.

Why This Matters for Schedules

Schedules are notoriously difficult for people to read and digest. Even if you’ve outlined actions, dependencies, and timelines in great detail, most will glaze over them. To combat this:

Summarize individual actions: Let team members know specifically what they’re responsible for and when.
Check-in frequently: Use regular syncs or standups to reinforce the schedule.
Make it visual: Timelines, Gantt charts, or Kanban boards can make schedules easier to process.

The Project Leader’s Role

If someone does it wrong after reading your document, that’s your problem, not theirs.

Written instructions are a necessary starting point, but they’re not enough. Send the documentation as a follow-up, not as the opening move: once someone has been walked through the process, they’ll actually use the document as a reference, because they’ve already been introduced to the content. Write it down, then go say it out loud.

It costs you twenty minutes and saves you a week.