I don't understand the problem here. If you cannot focus, just focus more?
More structure/checklist to force you to focus will have other side-effects like you found out. When you get rid of the structure, you still need to have a rough map in your mind of where you want to go.
To me, this is similar to being honest. You don't want to depend on a system or checklist for being honest. It is something you always need, as a policy. Focus is like that. If you want to focus seriously on something, just make it a policy, and don't use all these tricks as crutches.
More structure/checklist to force you to focus will have other side-effects like you found out. When you get rid of the structure, you still need to have a rough map in your mind of where you want to go.
To me, this is similar to being honest. You don't want to depend on a system or checklist for being honest. It is something you always need, as a policy. Focus is like that. If you want to focus seriously on something, just make it a policy, and don't use all these tricks as crutches.