Check out the milestones mod. It probably doesn’t have the depth you want but at least it will give you a short term goal. https://mods.factorio.com/mod/Milestones

I don’t have a specific checklist, but I can tell you what I like to do to try and stay on task.

What I usually like to do is make a world in editor mode and design small parts of that factory that I know I will need, like I know I will need enough smelters to fill a belt of iron, or I know I will need to produce each type of science. I copy those designs to blueprints, and place them back in the main world where I need them to be. At this point, it’s just a matter of placing buildings down where the ghosts say they should go, routing materials between factory sections, and scaling the factory up to deal with resource shortages.

I find that designing the factories in editor mode makes the process go much smoother, since there is not much getting in the way. No placement/breaking range limit, no resource limit, instantly able to copy and paste buildings, and the ability to use infinity chests to test throughput all make the designing process much easier for me.

My checklist is the build menu. I try to make an automated setup for everything in the game that makes sense. (I don’t for things like artillery guidance widget. Only need 1.)

If I need more of a thing, I build another setup. I don’t go for N science per minute. I prefer enough labs to balance a red science pack assembler, then balance the other colors by that ratio. If it’s too slow, I double it.

I like to play the game in phases - first phase is to automate the digging of coal, iron, and copper, (stone too if I feel energetic) into chests.

Then comes electricity - get something like 8 iron, 4 coal, 2 copper, 1 stone mines going and smelting.

Then start on science - I usually aim for 8 factories for red and green which will feed a few science labs.

Personally I then get all the science I can and basically build another base around that base, stealing transport belts from the science factories and building a basic bus and expanding out to the remaining science colours.

Another phase is probably trains which means lots of iron production.

Another phase is robots which marks the need for oil and copper being important.

Then with the final sciences comes true scale, my first base is usually gone by this point.

Finally comes the rocket/spaceship and then time to start building my REAL base.

I don’t tend to worry about number of factories or science per second but will try to increase until I’ve filled a belt with inputs.

I kind of use FNEI as a todi-list. I favorite whatever item is next on my agenda.

I also write reminders with concrete and walls now and then.

I will respond to all these once I get home. Thanks for replying.