How to Effectively Design and Use Documents

Have you ever had Sunday brunch at an upscale hotel? If so, you've probably seen a specialty chef whose talent at creating omelets never fails to impress the guests. Watch this person closely as he shifts his attention between multiple frying pans and you will notice that he has reduced the process of creating custom-designed omelets to a highly-efficient assembly line.

How does he work so fast? The basic ingredient of the omelet -- scrambled eggs -- is prepared and then allowed to cook until the moment when the chef places a combination of ingredients (chosen from bowls containing ham, mushrooms, green peppers, onions, etc.,) above the cooking egg. The chef then deftly folds the omelet over its ingredients and slides the finished product from the frying pan onto the delighted guest's plate.

The omelet is perfectly cooked. The showmanship is superb. The satisfaction level is perfect. And, if you've noticed, the chef never missed a beat.

That's because all of the work that went into preparing the ingredients he needed to create an omelet was handled in advance. The breaking and whipping of the eggs -- the washing, chopping, slicing, and dicing of the extra ingredients -- all took place before any cooking was started so that a minimum of work had to be performed while the egg was cooking.

Hold that thought!

Next: Creating A Documentation Assembly Line

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