Training and testing

Training and testing

I've written before that the best form of training follows this process: Tell them what you're going to do, tell them what you're doing, tell them what you did.

When working with your software company to report bugs or other issues, you should follow a similar process:

  1. Tell them what you were trying to do. For example, "I'm trying to process a membership order."
  2. Tell them how you did it. For example, "Here are the steps I followed." Be as explicit as possible and include screenshots!
  3. Tell them what happened. Show the results of your steps (again, including screenshots).

We've all heard "a picture is worth 1,000 words." I mentioned screenshots twice above for that very reason. Screenshots often communicate more than any narrative can.

"The membership join process doesn't work" is reporting a bug, but it's almost useless in terms of helping the software company figure out your problem. But following the process above will clearly communicate the issue and bring a resolution much more quickly.

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

Motion vs. Action

February 14, 2019

In James Clear’s book Atomic Habits (I recommend it!), he discusses the concept of motion vs. action. …

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Are You Answering Your Calls?

February 7, 2019

I’ve written about this before, but apparently I have to keep repeating it. If you’ve …

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Who do you trust?

January 31, 2019

Who Do You Trust I was reading an article recently about Warren Buffet’s “rules” for …

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Set benchmarks to measure progress

January 24, 2019

It’s impossible to measure progress if you don’t know your starting point. This sounds axiomatic, …

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You’ll make incorrect decisions. Acknowledge them and fix it.

January 17, 2019

A client of mine recently wrote the following to me: “It’s so hard to set …

You’ll make incorrect decisions. Acknowledge them and fix it. Read More »

"Experience is unobservable to everyone except the person who it happens to."

January 10, 2019

In Dan Gilbert’s book Stumbling on Happiness, he writes: “Experience is unobservable to everyone except …

"Experience is unobservable to everyone except the person who it happens to." Read More »

Know Your Audience Before You Speak

December 20, 2018

This one may seem obvious, but when you’re speaking to anyone, whether it’s one person, …

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"Behavior is a function of the person in their environment."

December 13, 2018

Lewin’s equation says “behavior is a function of the person in their environment.” (He was …

"Behavior is a function of the person in their environment." Read More »

Signal-to-noise ratio

December 5, 2018

Signal-to-noise ratio Signal-to-noise ratio, formally used, applies to electricity and engineering, and refers to how …

Signal-to-noise ratio Read More »

Consultants bring perspective

November 28, 2018

Consultants bring perspective At a recent speaking engagement, I was asked what I think is …

Consultants bring perspective Read More »

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