Do You Know the Typicals?

For every location in which you are actively researching, do you know when civil vital records start?Do you know what information is likely contained in those records during various time periods? Do you know how to locate court, land, probate, and other local records during the period of interest? Do you know when directories, county histories, and local histories were published? And if you are aware of the typical records and what they typically contain do you always look outside the box for sources that are easy to overlook or difficult to research or understand.

Don't limit yourself to the typical. There may be more.