Checklists!

Hi everyone,

After attending the Workflow Management seminar in Dallas, I am taking a fresh look at my GTD system. I'd like to know what checklists my fellow Connect members are using.

Please share what is working for you.

Warmest regards,

Chris W. Bell

First, let me point out that you're posting in a public forum and not on Connect. Some Connect members never look at the public forums...but many do, so that's ok.

Checklists! Love them! I have so many, but here's a few:

• Grocery Store-things we often buy and I want to be reminded about
• Packing for a trip
• Seasonal-what needs to be done around the house at each season
• Morning Routine-so I get moving and don't waste time
• Emergency Grab-In case of emergency or natural disaster; helpful to break it down in 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 mins.; keep in multiple locations in your house AND in your car and garage.
• List of my (very senior) father's medical history and all of his medications and dosages
• Clocks to change when the time changes-tell the truth--don't you ALWAYS forget at least one??
• Bills Due: When all my monthly bills typically arrive and when they are due (this is super helpful if you're taking a longer trip and want to pay something ahead of time)

I could go on an on because I have used checklists for years. As you continue with GTD, you'll see many uses for them. Connect will give you great ideas too.

Would love to hear what other checklists are out there. I'm always looking for a new one!

One of the many great pointers I got from the forums was to have a list of routines, or, rather, to have several lists of your routines. And it got me thinking about how my girls would handle the house and all of our obligations and responsibilities if their father and I were suddenly unable to take care of everything, or anything. So I spent 5 minutes and dashed off this list (I've pared it down so you don't fall asleep mid-stream):

Bills: who we pay, when we pay them and how they are paid
Insurance: what do we have, how often we reevaluate it, etc.
Auto Maintenance: what gets done when and where
Utilities: who provides services, where are the meters, network info, etc.
Gardener/Pool Guy: what does he do and how often
Pets: vet info, how often they go in for what, feeding/bathing schedules etc.
House alarm: what's wired (everything), who provides the service, who gets called, etc.
Documents: which are important and why, which are renewed and how often
Internet: what accounts/services do we have online, how are they managed

Eventually, I'll build these into formal checklist, but this is a start. And then they'll go into a schedule for reviewing every so often, maybe once during a year-end review.

That's my 2 cents, Chris!

Dena

I have two lists to contribute.

My beloved and I have a file we call The Plane Crash File.
If one of us were to die in a plane crash, what accounts have what passwords, the benefits Guy's phone #, where is the money, etc.

Obviously all of the sensitive info in one place is scary, so we keep it locked up, and update it 4 times per year.

The other checklist I created is how to do a training. First I created a mind map on the topic, and from there came the list.