There is a Checklist for that – Checklist Manifesto

Checklist Manifesto

Today we often ask,” is there an app for that?”  Atul Gawande asks, “is there a checklist for that?” in his new book, The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right.  The idea in this book is that using a checklist for things will help you avoid missing many of the simple things.  It is a fun read and makes a great point.

The book is the story of how Gawande (and a team of others) worked to solve a hard problem with a simple low cost solution.  It is really pretty amazing what they did and how they did it.  They solved the problem of  how to to improve the results of surgery world wide, with a checklist.

It is also the story of how checklist are used in many places to help people do a better job when the job is complex.  It shares some good ideas about how to make useful checklists and how to use them.

One of the things I really liked about this book is how it shows how to learn from other disciplines.  Gawande studied professionals from construction to rock and roll to airline pilots to see how they used checklist to help them be successful.   He tells some great stories on how they do it. It is a valuable idea to learn from how others solve the same kids of problems you have.

I like this book so much that I bought several copies and handed them out at work.  I think checklists are a great way to help us execute almost any process with improved results.

Thanks to Mark for mentioning this book in his blog, An It View.  He has some great ideas and this is not the first book I have read at his recommendation.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Tipping Point