Use a recipe and get it right every time!

Have you ever eaten a delicious meal cooked by someone else and thought you'd like to know how to make it yourself?  The first thing you'd do is ask the chef for the recipe so as to ensure your meal tastes as close as possible to the original.

Not only do you need the recipe to know what ingredients to include, and in what quantity, you also need to know what to do with them, and in what order!  Even when you've cooked it a couple of times, you'll still want to refer to the recipe again as a reminder.

Using a cookery recipe isn't so very different from following a procedure in your business, and yet how often do you start tasks from scratch because you haven't put a procedure or system in place?

For example, I have a checklist which contains everything I need to do when I run a training workshop.  It isn't that I don't trust myself to remember what needs doing, but following a checklist makes life so much easier because I don't HAVE to remember (or worry that I've forgotten something vital)!  As soon as the date is booked in my diary, I print out a new blank checklist and start working my way through all the actions, ticking them off as each one is completed.

Do you use checklists in your business?  What do you use them for?  Do share your experiences in the comments - I'd love to hear from you!