Always / Never: Beyond Superstition

I recently listened to a podcast by CFI Jason Miller http://www.thefinerpoints.net/podcast/ Jason spoke of how flying should be a series of ALWAYS and NEVER. My first thought was that he might just be a superstitious guy and ALWAYS fly with his favorite shirt or NEVER fly if a black cat climbs on his elevator. The more I listened, the more it hit home. After hearing his explanation I felt this was a great philosophy to remember. For example, at least once per year I seem to get my powered parachute bag twisted as I put the bag on my back seat for storage until the next flight. This normally happens when I have just finished a flight or am preparing for a flight and talking with a passenger. I now ALWAYS remove or place the chute bag chute from the backseat from the right side of the machine. I NEVER do this from the left side. So far this ALWAYS procedure has kept me from twisting the chute lines. Another thing I have put in place is that I NEVER do a complete preflight with someone standing around asking questions. I ALWAYS do a complete preflight before I haul my PPC to the field and an abbreviated preflight once at the field. Since hearing this podcast I have found it very useful to use the ALWAYS / NEVER thought process, it is beyond superstition. (Just for the record I have never been a superstitious flyer as long as I am wearing my purple boxers with the yellow stripe!!)