According to The Feynman Problem Solving Algorithm steps you need to undertake to solve any problem are really simple:

1. Write down the problem.
2. Think real hard.
3. Write down the answer.

In most cases you can't avoid step two, but sometimes you need to get the answer as soon as possible. The Cookbook won't teach you, but it might give you an help if you are felling lost working with SOAP or SOAP::Lite.