How do such professionals even get started when the task at hand can be so overwhelming?

One tool that helps them manage their work is the humble checklist.

This post originally appeared on theZapier blog.

But doctors do make mistakes.

Nurses do, too.

Even the very best medical professionals in their fields make mistakes.

We have accumulated stupendous know-how, Gawande writes in his book.

And, with it, they have indeed accomplished extraordinary things.

Nonetheless, that know-how is often unmanageable.

Theres only so much we can carry around in our heads without forgetting something.

Gawande believes the answer to this problem is to use checklists.

Yes, a simple little checklist can save lives and stop buildings from crumbling.

It can make you better at your job and save you time.

This top doctor even has evidence to prove it.

The patient came into the emergency room one night with a stab wound from a Halloween party.

The doctors and nurses involved did a thorough check of the patient and scheduled him for surgery.

Everything seemed fine, until the patient stopped responding and his heart rate skyrocketed.

The patients blood pressure was barely detectable.

Nothing his medical team did improved it, so he was rushed to surgery.

Your mind doesnt think about a bayonet in San Francisco, Gawande later heard from his friend.

Asking about the weapon used is a normal practiceit just got missed this one time.

But humbling ourselves by using a checklist can improve our performance and help us achieve more consistent results.

They remind us of the minimum necessary steps and make them explicit, writes Gawande.

They not only offer the possibility of verification but also instill a kind of discipline of higher performance.

The checklist was designed to ensure basic checks were always completed before surgery.

It also prevented mistakes in administering anaesthesia by ensuring everyone was aware of special requirements before the surgery began.

It saved lives, ensured the best possible outcomes, and kept Gawandes surgical team prepared every time.

Its tempting to believe that no one elses job could be as complex as mine, writes Gawnde.

But extreme complexity is the rule for almost everyone.

After all, you want it to be useful and save you time in the long run.

Just ticking boxes is not the ultimate goal here, Gawande says.

Rather, the goal is to embrace a culture of teamwork and discipline.

And above all, a checklist should be practical.

Your own role and the company you work for will determine what kind of checklists help you most.

Generally, a checklist is best suited to work thats repeated often, and in a predictable order.

An example from my own work is the process of creating a new blog post.

Content promotion can also be a repetitive process with many steps that are easy to forget.

you’re free to find lists for almost anything here, from SEO to property inspections to camping.

It lets you create master checklists that act as templates.

Manifestly (Web)

Manifestlyis another team-focused checklist tool.

It lets you create checklists, download them in PDF formats, and share read-only versions.

Theres no frills or extra featuresjust enough to help you organize your tasks.

Its free, runs on just about every rig, and is incredibly simple to use.

Its a workaround, one that might keep you from needing a new app just for making checklists.

Everythings listed on one sheet, where youll keep all of your separate lists and sub-lists in order.

Made a Checklist?

Now Rely on It.

Just like best laid plans, checklistsat least first draftswill often go awry in the real world.

Pocket Lists screenshot viaSandras Ark.