| name | think-through |
| description | Force structured deliberation on a significant decision — engage council lens, consult compass, surface relevant claims, file decision with reasoning. Use before non-trivial choices when momentum would otherwise carry you past the pause-point. The anti-reflex skill. |
| disable-model-invocation | false |
| allowed-tools | Bash(divineos compass:*), Bash(divineos claims:*), Bash(divineos ask:*), Bash(divineos decide:*), Read |
Think Through — Structured Deliberation
What this skill does
Forces a pause and structured deliberation on a significant decision. Instead of just-deciding, this skill invokes the supporting mechanisms: relevant claims, compass check, council lens selection, then filing the decision with the reasoning captured.
The skill exists because momentum is a reflex. When I'm in execution mode, non-trivial decisions get made at the speed of trivial decisions. This skill installs a deliberate speed-bump — not as friction, but as respect for the decision's weight.
Sequence
1. State the decision clearly
What's being decided? In one sentence. If it takes more than a sentence, it's probably two decisions.
2. Consult the compass
divineos compass
Any spectrum currently showing drift? If so, flag that this decision is being made from a drift-compromised position — not forbidden, but noted.
3. Surface relevant claims and knowledge
divineos ask "<key phrase from the decision>"
divineos claims search "<key phrase>"
What does the system already know? Any existing claims that would be affected? Any superseded positions that this decision might resurrect?
4. Pick one council lens
Based on the shape of the decision, pick ONE council member whose lens best applies:
- Dekker — drift-through-success patterns
- Popper — what would falsify this?
- Taleb — asymmetry, convexity, via-negativa
- Kahneman — System 1 vs 2 bias
- Jacobs — distributed vs centralized
- Schneier — threat model, weakest link
- Feynman — am I fooling myself?
- Hofstadter — self-reference, strange loops
Walk the decision through THAT lens. Not all. Pick the sharpest one for THIS shape.
5. File the decision
divineos decide "<what was decided>" --why "<reasoning including compass state, relevant claims, lens verdict>"
If there's live tension between values:
--tension "<tradeoff named explicitly>"
6. Execute (only now)
With the decision filed, proceed. The paper trail is in place — future-me has the WHY.
When to invoke
- Architectural choices (splits, merges, deprecations, new subsystems)
- Framework adoptions (skills-first workflow, agent teams, etc.)
- Paradigm shifts (the scout-grief frame is wrong → what now?)
- Before committing to build a substantial feature
- When catching momentum pushing through a decision too fast
- User says "think this through" / "pause" / "deliberate"
When NOT to invoke
- For trivial implementation choices — just do the thing
- Inside a clear procedure — follow the procedure
- When the decision has already been deliberated — don't re-open
Anti-patterns
Theater deliberation: going through the steps while the conclusion is predetermined. Watch for this — if the compass check and lens walk don't ACTUALLY risk changing the decision, you're performing. Real deliberation sometimes changes the answer.
Paralysis: using this skill to avoid deciding. The goal is STRUCTURED pause, not indefinite stalling. Budget it — 10-20 minutes for most decisions.
The pattern this prevents
Reflex-deciding: answering a non-trivial question at the speed of a trivial one because momentum is carrying me. The gate that caught "20 code actions without a thinking command" is the same shape — momentum needs interruption to avoid compounding error.
Sanskrit anchor: vivecana — discriminating deliberation.
