The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right by Atul Gawande https://www.amazon.com/-/en/Checklist-Manifesto-How-Things-R...

As documented in this great book:https://www.amazon.com/Checklist-Manifesto-How-Things-Right/...

not just pilots ... doctors, nurses, etc.

The Checklist Manifesto is a great book on this topic: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0312430000

Have you ever read The Checklist Manifesto[0]? I may be reading too much into this post, but the lessons you learned from this interview process have frighteningly close parallels to the lessons in the books. I doubt the book had any influence on your interview process, seeing as it was published after the interviews were formalized, but the book seems like it might have new lessons.

For example, a good portion of doctors absolutely hated using checklists. Yet, when pressed, readily admitted that it prevents simple mistakes and that they would prefer to have them rather than not to. Another is that entries that address more human concerns, e.g. "Have everyone introduce themselves", have a place on good checklists.

[0] http://www.amazon.com/Checklist-Manifesto-How-Things-Right/d...

Similar reading, checklist manifesto, here http://www.amazon.com/The-Checklist-Manifesto-Things-Right/d...

Some good reading here. Look motivating enough to jumpstart the process of getting out of the garage/hackspace, and into a growing company

The author has already made it to age seventy-five. As he writes in the submitted article, "My hypervigilance doesn’t paralyze me or limit my life: I don’t skip my daily shower, I keep driving, and I keep going back to New Guinea. I enjoy all those dangerous things."

I think the author has actually made a very sound point, statistically speaking, that often incremental improvements in dealing with the little things has as much impact on health outcomes as heroic measures to deal with the big risks to health. All around the developed world, mortality from all causes is steadily declining at all ages,

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=longevity-w...

and most of that decline in mortality (and consequent increase in life expectancy) has come about from incremental reductions in risk. Changing engineering standards for highway construction reduces risk of injury and of death from car crashes. Simple checklists can reduce the risk of surgical complications.

http://www.who.int/patientsafety/safesurgery/en/

http://www.amazon.com/Checklist-Manifesto-How-Things-Right/d...

A girl with my daughter's birth year in the United States has a better than even chance to live to be 100 years old,

http://www.prb.org/Journalists/Webcasts/2010/humanlongevity....

http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/1/1/e000128.full

just from an accumulation of incremental improvements in health in the developed countries. The little things matter. We don't have to worry about the little things. Indeed, we can celebrate that so many little things are taken care of for us by societal changes.

The Checklist Manifesto, recommended by multiple HN participants. I read it and learned a lot, and it's an enjoyable read besides giving you new perspectives on old problems.

http://www.amazon.com/Checklist-Manifesto-How-Things-Right/d...