The next person needs the detail you are most likely to leave out. You know which folder contains the current drawing. You know why the small box has been set aside. You know the apparently finished page still needs one answer. While you are working, these facts feel attached to the objects themselves. They become less obvious when you leave the room.
A useful note begins with the current position. Name the thing and say what has happened to it. “The revised drawing is in the blue folder” gives someone a place to begin. “All set” assumes they already know what was being set up. A few extra words can save a conversation that neither person needed to have.
Write the next useful sentence
Then explain the next action, if there is one. The person receiving the work should be able to tell whether they are being asked to review it, move it, or simply leave it where it is. If nothing needs doing, that is useful information too. A note can protect an arrangement from unnecessary improvement as easily as it can ask for help.
Include the reason for anything that looks odd. A missing page, an empty compartment, or two nearly identical versions may prompt someone to investigate. One short explanation can keep them from repeating work you have already done. There is no need to recount the whole afternoon. Choose the fact that changes what they should do next.
Put the note where the person will meet the work. A beautiful message in the wrong place still leaves a puzzle on the table. Keep it close enough to the object that the connection is clear, and include a name or date when the note may remain there beyond the day. Temporary instructions can become confusing when they outlive the situation they describe.
Before leaving, read it as if you had just arrived. Replace the vague “this” with the name of the thing. Check that the folder or shelf can actually be found. Then stop writing. The note has done its job when the next person can put down their bag, understand what is waiting, and begin.
