How do I document a process quickly?

Record it while you do it rather than writing it up afterwards. Running the process as normal with a recorder on gives you the steps in order with nothing reconstructed -- and reconstruction from memory is where the gaps come from.

Which processes should I document first?

The ones that would stop if a single person were unavailable for two weeks. That list is short, everyone knows what is on it, and it is the actual business risk -- unlike "document everything", which guarantees nothing gets documented.

Do I still need written instructions?

A short amount. A recording shows what to do; three sentences of text explain why and when, and make the recording findable in the first place, since text is what people search.

← Back to blog

Documenting a Process Nobody Ever Wrote Down

August 28, 2026

Every small company has processes that exist only in one person's habits: the monthly reconciliation, the way a refund is actually issued, the sequence of screens that produces the report the board sees.

Nobody writes them down because writing them down is a project, and the person who knows is the busiest.

Why written documentation does not get made

It is a separate task from the work, so it never gets scheduled.
It goes stale and nobody notices, which discourages doing it again.
The expert underestimates what needs saying, so it is incomplete.
It is boring, which is a real reason and worth admitting.

Record while you do it, not afterwards

The cheapest documentation is captured during the work itself. Run the process as you always do, with a recorder on, and you have the steps in order without having reconstructed anything.

Reconstructing from memory is where the gaps come from: the expert forgets the step they do automatically, which is reliably the step that confuses everyone else.

What to capture first

The things that would stop if one person were unavailable for two weeks. That list is short, everybody knows what is on it, and it is the entire business risk.

Start there rather than trying to document everything, which is the ambition that ensures nothing gets documented.

Keep the writing, keep it short

A recording shows what to do; a line of text explains why and when. Both together are better than either, and the text can be three sentences rather than a page.

Text is also searchable, which is how somebody finds the recording in the first place.

Frequently asked questions

How do I document a process quickly?: Record it while you do it rather than writing it up afterwards. Running the process as normal with a recorder on gives you the steps in order with nothing reconstructed -- and reconstruction from memory is where the gaps come from.
Which processes should I document first?: The ones that would stop if a single person were unavailable for two weeks. That list is short, everyone knows what is on it, and it is the actual business risk -- unlike "document everything", which guarantees nothing gets documented.
Do I still need written instructions?: A short amount. A recording shows what to do; three sentences of text explain why and when, and make the recording findable in the first place, since text is what people search.

Keep reading

This is what Demorta does

Click through it — the same kind of demo you can record of your own product.

Try it on your own product

Record your first interactive demo free.

Five demos on the free plan, forever. No credit card, no trial countdown, no sales call. Install the Chrome extension, click through your product once, and you have a shareable link in about ten minutes.

Start free →