Standard Operating Procedures

Short written steps for deploys and incidents so nobody improvises when the clock is loud.

Key Concept

• SOPs are simple written steps for recurring work - so nobody improvises under stress.
• Level 1: A short written checklist helps when you are scared or rushed and cannot trust your memory.
• Level 2: Simple written steps for recurring work beat guessing when stress shrinks what people can hold in their head.
• Level 3: SOPs work because adrenaline narrows working memory - a short checklist is competence when the clock is loud.
• Level 4: Write deploy and incident steps before the emergency owns the clock - short beats heroic improvisation.
• Level 5: The checklist is not an insult to competence - it is competence under pressure; same lane as Preparedness when adrenaline shrinks working memory.
• Short deploy and incident steps beat memory when adrenaline shrinks working memory.
• The checklist is not an insult to competence - it is competence when the clock is loud.

Examples

• The closing routine after every match - ice, tape, log the injury - lives on the locker-room whiteboard so nobody improvises when everyone's exhausted.
• The building guard walks the posted evacuation route he practiced on quiet shifts - written steps when the alarm trips loud.

Note Relationships