Checklists are the unsung heroes of productivity.
They prevent errors in repeated tasks. Plain and simple.
When used in hospitals, it resulted in 36% fewer major complications and 47% fewer deaths.
There are two ways to execute checklists:
DO→CONFIRM — everything is done from memory, but to confirm, the checklist is checked
READ→DO — you carry out the tasks as you read
When to use checklists?
When you are executing a set of routine tasks:
- Pushing code to production
- Marketing campaigns
- Uploading a video on YouTube
- Onboarding an employee
How did I use it at MakeMyResume?
We had a checklist for all our freelance résumé writers to ensure that rework was reduced and mistakes were avoided, leading to improved quality.
It also served as a constant guide to the writer to cross-verify the guides and training documents.
It only works if there is a checker process with a second person who checks whether those points are actually covered.
Production Release Checklist
Before releasing a version to production, we use a production release checklist to make sure all points are covered, and nothing is missed.
The impact of any small step being missed can be huge. That's why it warrants the checklist.
How to implement it?
Do it for repeated tasks and not for new ones, and if the impact of a miss is large.
Tools to use:
- Google Forms
- Slite
- Notion
- Todoist
Sources
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