This One Productivity Technique Will Supercharge Your Performance

Would you like to skyrocket your productivity and performance at work?

Then you’re in the right place.

Because today, I'm going to introduce you to the simplest and most effective productivity technique known to man.

It is what surgeons use to save lives, pilots use to fly planes safely, and what engineers employ to build skyscrapers.

It’s partly what NASA used to land a man on the moon safely.

And the technique?

A checklist.

Why A Checklist?

"The mind is good for so many things, but it's a bad office" Greg McKeown

If your work involves solving complex problems, you're likely to forget basic things without even realizing it.

Which is why you need a simple solution to making sure you remember everything.

A checklist is that solution. Using a checklist makes sure you don’t miss the most basic and essential items. Those that you’re likely to forget.

Checklists help you break down complex jobs into small and easy to perform tasks that you can implement easily and correctly.

But, How Effective Are Checklists?

I first came across the idea of checklists after reading The Checklist Manifesto by Dr. Atul Gawande.

In the book, Dr. Gawande, a practicing surgeon, details the results of a pilot program where he and his team tested the power of checklist in reducing surgery-related infections and deaths.

The 2008 study conducted in eight cities around the globe discovered that the use of a 19 point simple checklist helped to reduce surgery-related deaths by 47%, and complications by 35%--more than any drug or equipment had been able to do.

It’s not only surgeons who use checklists.

Pilots have also been using checklists since the Boeing BA 737 crisis.

The October 1935 accident, which occurred as Boeing was testing a next-generation bomber, was the defining moment that led to the introduction of pre-flight checklists.

Investigations into the accident revealed that the crash wasn't caused by incompetence, but by pilots overlooking the basics.

The response to this: A checklist.

Use Checklists To Improve Your Productivity, Creativity And Efficiency

Do you find yourself cognitively overloaded?

A checklist could help you with this.

You can make a checklist for literary anything.

Are you planning to travel? Make a checklist for things you’ll need to pack. This way, you don’t stress over forgetting certain items.

While at work, do you make novice mistakes despite having put down the 10,000 hours? Using a checklist could help you improve the efficiency and quality of your work.

Are you working on a complex project involving multiple steps? Break down the project into small tasks. Use a checklist to move from one task to another (With such a checklist, you don’t have to think about what to do next). By using a checklist, you're likely to make fewer mistakes since you spend less time thinking and more time executing.

To make the best out of your next checklist, do the following:

• Keep it orderly and arrange steps systematically.
• Use questions to promote thought. For example, if you're traveling, you can ask, "is the camera and its accessories charged?"
• Divide your checklist into sections to make it simple and avoid being overwhelmed by a long list.
• Check off the checklist. This leads to a release of dopamine, which keeps you motivated.

Over To You

I’ll admit it, checklists can be boring and tedious.

But if you’re looking to improve your performance and crush your goals, you’ll have to adopt the mundane into your life.