figure-it-out

1# Figure it out
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3When the task matches no playbook, design one. The deliverable before any code is the workflow itself: a sequence of phases that scales rigor to the task, runs the scientific method, and leaves a decision trail a human can audit after stepping away.
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5## Start
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7Open a todolist whose first item is to read the Principles section of the **poteto-mode** skill. Then add the phases below as todos.
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9## Phase A: Frame
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11Ground first, then commit. Don't start the run until you can state:
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13- The definition of done as a falsifiable predicate (the **prove-it-works** principle skill).
14- Scope, quantified: rough units and effort, plus the blockers grounding surfaced.
15- The rigor level, biased high. One-way doors and high blast radius get more. Reversible low-stakes steps get less. Rigor is gates and artifacts, not "try harder".
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17Present the framing and tradeoffs before committing to a long run. Reversible work proceeds (the **never-block-on-the-human** principle skill), but a multi-hour run earns one checkpoint.
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19## Phase B: Design the workflow
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21Decompose into atomic, independently-landable units. Sequence riskiest-unknown-first. Scaffold and verification come before features (the **foundational-thinking** principle skill).
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23- Build the verification harness before the work, with the baseline captured from the pre-change state, so the check reads as "old value vs new value".
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