You’ve no doubt travelled on a plane at some point in your life. But have you ever stopped to think about just how massive aviation operations are? Well, we can thank the significant amount of checklists and processes within our aviation industry for how safely we can fly and how smoothly the systems operate. But why is it so many of us seem to dread the idea of checklists if they prove to be so valuable?
Perhaps it’s the thought of an overwhelmingly long list of things you have to do, or maybe it just seems too time-consuming to write one in the first place. Whatever it is, we’re here to give you 3 reasons why checklists should be your new best friend.
- Checklists can be fun
Checklists don’t have to be boring and monotonous. From colourful graphs to fun dreamboard-style lists, you can create a checklist that works for you. Put up a cork board, buy a fun diary and whip out your highlighters to get as creative as you like or keep it as simple as you want. We promise that soon enough, you’ll be addicted to checklists.
- Success comes with a plan
You’ve no doubt heard the phrase ‘a goal without a plan is just a dream.’ And as cliché as it sounds, planning and organising your time and tasks is the first step to success, the same way that tax planning is important to the best tax outcome. By detailing what you want to achieve, when you want to achieve it and how you’re going to achieve it, you become up to 42% more likely to accomplish those goals and tasks according to a study from the University of California.
- Save time and energy
You may think setting time aside to create a checklist is a bit counterintuitive if you’re short on time, but trust us when we say that having a clear picture of what needs to be done and when goes a long way in saving not just physical time, but mental time. When you own a small business, you often have a million things in your mind at once, so free up brain space and time by putting it on paper. That way, you can look at it once a day and check each task off as you go.
A checklist also helps save time for your business. By building your business around process and not people, you make it more efficient, saleable and focused for both you and your team.
So what does a good checklist look like?
- Leave no assumed knowledge
- Detail each of the steps; if needed, link to further steps required or training for certain steps.
- Time frames and frequency
- Customise checklists to different jobs
- Link to a dummy of what you are attempting to produce.
- Always update your master checklists so that the process is always up to date.
- Don’t be over-detailed or create too many steps (it’s not a manual or an essay). Keep it clear and concise.
Want help defining your goals and putting together a game plan? Contact PCR Accounting & Advisory today to see how we can put your business processes become more enjoyable, sustainable and time-savvy. Call us on 03 9847 7516.
