Human brains are powerful. Yet like anything, the human brain has flaws or weaknesses. Like the limited ability to quickly process information. This notion, once led Steve Jobs to say, “Computers are like a bicycle for the mind.”
Short term memory is another part of our brain that some would say is flawed. Short term memory retains and purposefully deletes certain types of information after very short periods of time. That’s why it is my contention that while the bicycle is the ultimate tool for the mind, the checklist is the ultimate plugin for the brain.
1. 42%
At The Dominican University, Dr. Gail Matthews completed a study of 267 people, in which she found that humans are 42% more likely to complete goals, if they write them down.
The study broke the participants into 5 groups, where some groups were tasked with writing goals down, others were asked to simply think about the goals, and some were asked to send progress reports to a friend.
With out going into heavy detail, Dr Matthews concluded that, “My study provides empirical evidence for the effectiveness of three coaching tools: accountability, commitment, and writing down one’s goals,”
Read the study here.
2. The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande.
Very rarely do I ever read a book twice. However, when I first read The Checklist Manifesto, I was blown away. The case studies about incorporating simple checklists into various industries like the airline industry and medical industry, captivated me and inspired me to not only read the book again, but to develop Checkli, helping anyone discover and use awesome checklists created by more successful and accomplished people.
One particular case study in this book stood out to me. It was about how Boeing almost collapsed as a company in 1935. Boeing was debuting their new Boeing Model 299 for the US Army. Boeing brought in the best pilot in the world, with the most experience, to make sure nothing went wrong. The plane went up, and with in a few seconds it nosedived into the ground, killing the pilot.
Reports, concluded that there were no mechanical malfunctions at all. The plane had functioned perfectly. The well known, respected, and experienced pilot simply forgot to release the “gust lock” on take off, causing the plane to immediately crash.
It was later concluded that the Model 299 was “too much airplane” for man to fly.
Boeing fought there way back from this epic tragedy and managed to still sell a few Model 299s. After incorporating simple, and mandatory checklists, Model 299s went on to fly almost 2 million miles without incident, simply by incorporating checklists into every aspect of aviation, including mandatory take off and landing checklists.
Today, there's not a single airline that doesn't have mandatory checklists for all aspects of aviation, from manufacturing to maintenance and aviation.
Get the book here.
3. Short Term Memory
In 1956, George A. Miller of Princeton University, concluded in a study that short term memory is capable of remembering 7 items at a time, plus or minus two. Miller deemed this The Magic Number 7.
In support of Miller's conclusions, a study by Atkinson and Shiffrin in 1968, concluded that short term memory only lasts for about 30 seconds.
So, you have to ask yourself a question. Do you have more than 7 tasks to get done in the next 30 seconds?
If the answer is yes, science says you better make a checklist.
Conclusion
The human ego is another problematic source of the human brain. We all think we can remember 5 or 6 routine tasks or goals without forgetting them. Well, what about 20 tasks, 50, or 100?
We need a plugin, like the checklist, to assist with this challenge, because according to Atul Gwande, “The volume and complexity of what we know has exceeded our individual ability to deliver its benefits correctly, safely, or reliably.”
Let that sink in.
