How to ask for instructions in writing at work
Someone explains a task out loud, fast, with other people standing around. You nod. Then you are back at your desk and half of it has gone, and asking again feels awkward.
Asking for instructions in writing at work is an ordinary request. Two guidance pages from the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) list written instructions as an option [1][2]. Below are sentences for different moments, a few ideas people use, and what guidance pages and other adults describe.
Two starting points are asking for the same thing by email after it was said out loud, or sending your own short summary of what you understood and asking whether it is right.
What can you say to get instructions in writing?
You can pick the sentence that fits the moment and change it until it sounds like you. None of them needs you to explain why. Whether to tell an employer about a condition is each person's own decision [6].
When a task was explained out loud:
"Could you send me that by email as well? I'll reply once I've read it."
When the task has several parts:
"Could we put the steps in a short list?"
After a conversation, when you want to be sure you have it right:
"I want to be sure I have this right. Here is what I understood: ___. What I'm unsure about: ___. Is that correct?"
That one works after any conversation. You write the summary, so the other person only has to say yes or point out what is missing. You can leave the blanks out and send only the first sentence and your summary.
Before a meeting, or when a question comes to you later:
"I have a few questions. Is it all right if I send them in writing?"
When a request arrives with no date and no description:
"Could you tell me the deadline and what the finished work should include?"
With a manager you work with often, as a standing arrangement:
"I take in information more easily when I can read it. Could we use email for instructions?"
When several requests land at once:
"I'm not sure which of these to do first. Could you tell me the order?"
Before a meeting where you will be asked questions:
"Could the agenda come before the meeting?"
When someone asks you something on the spot:
"Could I have some time to think about this and answer in writing?"
When the answer to a request for email was no, or no reply came:
"Is there another way I could get the details in writing?"
What makes a request for writing easier to say yes to?
These are mostly Mindum's own ideas, not findings. Some come from guidance pages, marked with a number.
Some people add what the request is for, if they like, for example "so I can follow it exactly" or "so I have the details in one place".
Some people ask for something specific. JAN's page names email when possible, transcripts of meetings, agendas for trainings and checklists for tasks [1].
Some people start small, with one email after one meeting, and widen it later.
Some people keep the replies. Understood's tip sheet suggests saving emails and copies of forms [6].
Some people ask early. The same tip sheet suggests asking before a challenge starts to affect work [6].
What do workplace guidance pages list?
Written instructions show up on the JAN pages as one option among several. Acas lists related options.
The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is a US service that gives free advice on workplace changes for people with disabilities (it calls them accommodations) and on the Americans with Disabilities Act, according to its pages. Its page on written instructions says some people find it useful to have directions given in writing [1]. Its ADHD page lists written instructions among strategies linked to attention, executive functioning (skills such as planning and starting tasks), managing time, memory and organising. It also says not everyone with ADHD will need accommodations [2].
Acas is a UK workplace advice service. Its page on neurodiversity, last updated 30 January 2025, lists talking through written information, breaking instructions into clear steps, and extra time to read information and finish tasks. For organisation it lists regular check-ins, visual planners that highlight deadlines, extra reminders and breaking work into smaller tasks [3].
What do other adults describe?
One analysis of 277 workplace threads on the r/ADHD forum, posted between 2023 and 2025, found posters describing documentation, reminders and written task outlines as lightening how much they had to hold in their heads. Forum posters are not a checked sample [4].
In an online survey of 245 autistic adults, email was generally preferred over phone calls when contacting people and organisations they did not know. Work was one of seven situations in the survey [5]. The phone side of this is in Making phone calls when it is hard.
How might a request sound to the other person?
In the forum analysis, clarifying questions were sometimes read as defiance [4]. Some people add a short reason, for example "this helps me do it properly". That is Mindum's idea, and it may not change the reply.
If you are in the UK and want to put the request formally, the Acas page says workers can use a template letter to ask for workplace changes (the page calls them reasonable adjustments), which it links to [3]. In the US, Understood's tip sheet describes starting with a conversation with a manager or someone in Human Resources, then following the company's process, which may include forms [6].
Does this differ by country?
Yes. JAN says "accommodations" and refers to the Americans with Disabilities Act [1]. Acas says "reasonable adjustments" and refers to the Equality Act 2010 [3]. A local workplace advice service can say what applies to a particular country, employer and situation.
About this article
- The ideas come from workplace guidance pages (JAN, Acas, Understood), one analysis of public r/ADHD forum posts about work, and one survey of autistic adults. The sentences, the summary layout and some of the small tips are Mindum's own wording; you can change them to sound like you.
- The guidance pages describe options and are not legal advice.
- If instructions at work are hard to follow in the way they are given, an occupational health service (a workplace health service in some countries) or a clinician who knows about autism and ADHD can look at it with you.
Sources
- Job Accommodation Network (JAN). Written Instructions. Solution page, undated, accessed 14 October 2026. askjan.org
- Job Accommodation Network (JAN). Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Accommodation page, undated, accessed 14 October 2026. askjan.org
- Acas. Adjustments for neurodiversity. Reasonable adjustments at work. Page last updated 30 January 2025. acas.org.uk
- Jameson TP, Grabarski MK, Morales Arana M, Santos PA. What makes work sustainable for adults with ADHD? Interpreting workplace strain and support through Reddit data. Frontiers in Psychology. 2026;17:1820248. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1820248
- Howard PL, Sedgewick F. 'Anything but the phone!': Communication mode preferences in the autism community. Autism. 2021;25(8):2265-2278. Abstract read. doi:10.1177/13623613211014995
- Understood. How to ask for a workplace accommodation. Tip sheet, 2023. PDF
By Mindum. An app to track and regulate emotions, energy, and focus.
