Thursday, April 15, 2010

The Checklist Manifesto

I read an interesting review of The Checklist Manifesto on the Globe and Mail site. The gist of the book is that checklists simplify complex tasks. I would add to this - use a checklist to make sure repetitive tasks are done properly. It also can add uniformity to a job and allow for constant improvement on systems.

I have long been a big proponent of the To Do list. I even run it together and call it a todo list. Every Time Management Book I read or course I take uses a todo list in some form.

A checklist is not a todo list. To get the most value from a todo list, things need to be prioritized.

Lists can reduce stress. I know if I have things written on my todo list, they no longer take mind space and for me this reduces stress.

Now I need to get "Back to Work" (one of my mantras I use to be more productive)
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2 comments:

  1. davidburkusApril 15, 2010 at 12:33 PM

    Good post. Also a huge To Do list fan. One of the only disappoinments of the iPhone has been that I had to buy a ToDo app.

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  2. ceotricksApril 16, 2010 at 9:56 PM

    Have to admit I haven't read the book, but I don't believe that old school checklist are still an effective management tool. I recently posted a piece on using OneNote to manage reports, meetings and action items. Not a MS fan generally, but OneNote is one of the best tools out there.
    http://ceotricks.wordpress.com/

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