| name | breakdown |
| description | Break a large or vague goal into a structured set of concrete, actionable sub-tasks. Use when someone has a project, goal, or piece of work they want decomposed into manageable steps. |
Break down work
Decompose a goal into a clear hierarchy of actionable tasks.
Steps
- If the goal is unclear, ask one or two focused questions to understand the desired outcome and any hard constraints (deadline, scope, who's involved).
- Decompose the goal into work items:
- Each item should be a concrete action with a clear "done" state.
- Group related items under short headings where it helps.
- Surface dependencies (what must happen before what) and obvious risks or unknowns.
- Keep the breakdown right-sized — enough detail to act on, not so granular it becomes noise.
Output
Return:
- A nested checklist of tasks (and sub-tasks where useful).
- A short dependencies / sequencing note if order matters.
- A short open questions list for anything that blocks a clean plan.
If the memory MCP connector is available, offer to store the resulting task list so it persists for later recall and updating. If it isn't available, the breakdown still stands on its own.
To order the resulting tasks, use the companion prioritise skill.
