Why Checklist
Having been in the quality department for quite some time, I am familiar with checklists and how effective they can be when used as intended. Or how powerful it becomes in the course of a project’s life, and sometimes, if followed in between our own lives, as it would bring much-needed relief. I will share one of my examples when my idea of implementing a checklist system.
Can a Checklist Be Useful in Daily Life
When I visited a friend who was staying alone in a flat and during a casual chat he said that, he used to forget many things like switching off lights or fans in some days, or found air conditioner running on some other day, some days the door to the balcony kept remains open (As it was in the top floor, there was no issue for being it open except the entry of pigeons inside the rooms doing shitty things).
And to his horror, one fine day, he kept something in the gas stove with the gas on and forgot it before he left. As it was in the flame mood, the only unfortunate thing that happened was, it burned the steel dish over it till the gas finished in the cylinder. He told me that things would be scary if it happened again, and he needed to do something to prevent the recurrence of such issues.
After curious thoughts, I suggested that he introduce a checklist system to follow before leaving the flat each day. I helped him identify the key points to check before stepping out—such as ensuring the gas was off, lights were switched off, taps were closed, and doors were locked—and we pasted the checklist on the back of the front door. I also added columns next to each point for Monday through Sunday, so that every day before leaving for the office, he could review the list and tick the appropriate box after physically rechecking each item. Later, he mentioned that the system was extremely helpful, became part of his daily routine, and worked perfectly throughout the time he lived there as a bachelor.
How You Plan a Function at Home – Will a Checklist Help Us
In other contexts in our lives, checklists also come in handy and are useful in between when we need to organize many kinds of stuff for a particular activity. Maybe many might have done indirectly what we call the essence of a checklist in between – in our life – like in situations such as a function, a family trip, or even attending an interview.
There are so many things to arrange or organize and many people to be invited, say for a marriage. The planning used to start many months in advance, and what many people used to do is that they list down the important items to be arranged and the names of all individuals and families to be invited. And once they have done it, they strike it off, relieving themselves a relaxed a little bit.
Checklist – Everyone’s Favorite
That is exactly what a checklist will do almost everywhere across the universe, be it in airlines, cruise ships, hospitals, manufacturing industries, in flights, and of course in the construction industries, in some places exhaustive one. Strike off the part done from a set of things to do without fail every time, which may otherwise lead to disasters if it is in cases like airplanes and surgeries.
The Checklist Manifesto – Most Rated Book on Checklists
For those who would like to learn more about checklists and their importance, get a copy of the book The Checklist Manifesto, authored by Atul Gawande. He is a surgeon by profession and has penned many famous books with a special knack for conveying the matter to readers. The book says that the use of checklists has reduced the chances of avoidable errors to a considerable extent in medical procedures, irrespective of the size and standard of clinics, whether very big with experienced staff and advanced facilities in the US or primitive clinics in poor countries. Read here Malcolm Gladwell’s review of The Checklist Manifesto
Aviation and medical are the two fields that use the checklist extensively. In flights, it is used during take-off, landing, and in emergencies. A set of guidelines will be displayed in an emergency so that pilots can perform without leaving an item that otherwise may happen if it is not there. And it is easy to imagine how helpful in complicated surgeries.
Checklists are a cognitive net, a mechanism that can help prevent experienced people from making errors due to flawed memory and attention, and ensure team works together.
Checklist For Teamwork
Yes, it works well for a team – a subordinate can always mention to his boss if he leaves a point from a checklist to perform or say a nurse to the doctor – The power of the checklist.
But how much is too much is also a question while preparing a checklist. In the book, Gawande explains in detail that a good checklist is short but not too short. If there are several items, people tend to neglect some. A proper checklist is a selective one that does not have items that are most common in each activity. Like when we plan a checklist for the arrangements of a marriage function, no need for food or an auditorium to include in it, isn’t it?
All sorts of people use checklists nowadays. The builders use them to make sure that the bit of complicated structures are built on time. Chefs use them to make sure that the dishes are prepared without missing an ingredient. The aircraft industry, once plagued by accidents, uses them particularly well – not only to make sure that the pilots take off safely but also to learn from disasters. Whenever planes crash, safety experts quickly incorporate the lessons that have been learned into the pilots’ checklist.
Checklist in the Construction Industry – A Glimpse
In the construction industry, checklists are a continuous practice and play a vital role in minimizing errors and oversights, which in turn helps prevent accidents and incidents while saving both time and money. Ensuring safety on construction sites is one of the most challenging responsibilities. Implementing safety checklists for critical activities—especially where workers’ safety is at risk—significantly reduces the likelihood of unexpected incidents and accidents.
The safety department also practices risk assessment, which involves listing down possible chances of risks associated with work before those activities start on the site. This could also be considered as a checklist to avoid future unfortunate happenings on the site.
The practice of checklists during work saves time and money effectively. If a work is not done as per the specification or not as per the other approved details (Usually all these items will be part of the ITP), the work is rejected, and the contractor needs to rework it again or take corrective action to bring it as per the requirement, costing extra time and money.
So to conclude, checklists are a powerful tool and practicing them in your professional life and to an extent in real life makes the days simple, effective, and less troublesome.
Practicing checklists—both professionally and personally—can make our lives simpler, safer, and far more efficient. A checklist may seem small, but its impact can be enormous.
