If you are working with texts, details, numbers, and your mistakes may result in wrong decisions and have financial implications, read this post.
1. Complete your work and only then proof-read or check it. While writing or working with numbers, your brain is in creative or computational mode. Let it flow rather than switch it in the auditing mode.
2. Interruptions are hard to avoid. When they do happen, make a point to jot down the next step or where you had stopped. Shading the last excel cell may help you get back on track faster. It may be a good idea to print out a document and find a quiet place. This helps muffling the distractions down, although be wary of taking your laptop with you – you are carrying a bunch of interruptions by default. “Read it “cold” after you’re done. “Cold” meaning a few hours gap and preferably on a different medium. I try to stay paperless these days, so instead of printing, I read it on my iPad,” says Ahmed Arif, Co-Founder at Clara Technologies & Principal at Support Legal. Michel Zayat of VIA Concepts Development Consultants describes his way: “Best place to review, organize and finalize all thoughts is under the shower. Then I review fast (pen and paper ready on kitchen table). Probably with a short coffee. Ready to submit or present.”
3. When it is time to proof-read the document or check the excel table, forget the context! Get through sentence by sentence or cell by cell. Working backwards helps to distract your mind and concentrate on detail and not the meaning. If you are checking the excel table, make sure formulas are copied correctly. Try scrolling down one row at a high speed: your eyes will spot pattern change if there is a different formula in one of the cells. “I usually mock up the data in a rough way first, see how it visualizes in graphics then do a more detailed pass being extremely accurate with the data. I intentionally change variables to see how flexible the data is, plus what levers impact the graphs in what way. It helps get an underlying understanding of whatever dataset I’m playing with” comments Daniel Hart, CEO at Masterkey
4. Have a short check list either on a paper post-it note stuck to the corner of your screen, or a digital post-it (a default Windows 10 feature) on the display. Check for facts, check for totals. Cross-reference with the previously shared revisions of the document, and if your numbers are different, know why. Angel investor Krishnan Vaidyanathan recommends: “I read it 3-4 times in a different location, days and times. In addition, I also try and put myself in the shoes of all possible readers and come up with a set of questions they might ask. This helps me edit the piece of work to ensure that all questions are addressed.”
5. Use proof-reading tech to help you share correct texts. Good enough for grammar and spelling, Microsoft Office has a spell check built-in (use a short-cut Fn+F7 to check in Excel, Word or PowerPoint and Outlook). I would also recommend using a free version of Grammarly. The app also suggests corrections while filling any online forms or working with documents in the browser. Pay attention to the types of errors you make: you will be surprised but there is a pattern in it. My curse is using Mac and PC, and I keep having letters mixed as my fingers get used to the keyboard size. What is yours?
6. Once the content is checked (hopefully more than once!), look at the format. Alignments, page breaks, word wrap in Excel… if you have charts in PowerPoint, use the grid aid and snap them to the same positions on multiple pages.
7. At last, if you have a luxury of having a colleague casting their eye on it, use this tip. “I usually write out an outline as bullet points to give structure to what I want to create, then proceed with creating the work (text, excel, report etc), then read and read and read the produced work, at different moods, timings and display medium (paper or screen). I also share my work, if applicable, to a confidant or a colleague. Usually my work should be perfected by now” advises Omar Almahmoud of the ICT Fund. Matthias Hemeier, Business Manager at Al Gurg Lifestyle supports this idea too: “I write normally bullet points down still in an old fashion way of writing it down on paper. With those bullet points I write the complete text on my computer. Once done I read it several times and hand it to trusted colleagues.”
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This article was originally posted at https://speedoflightintelligence.wordpress.com/2019/12/08/on-the-importance-of-self-check/
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