para

name	para
description	PARA method for organizing content by actionability (Projects, Areas, Resources, Archive). Use when organizing files, categorizing notes, deciding Projects vs Areas vs Resources, managing folders, or maintaining your knowledge structure.

<essential_principles>

PARA: Organize by Actionability, Not Topic

PARA organizes information by when you'll need it:

Category	Definition	Key Signal
Projects	Active work with deadlines	"Complete", "deliver", "launch"
Areas	Ongoing responsibilities, no end date	"Maintain", "manage", "track"
Resources	Reference material for future use	"Interesting", "might need"
Archive	Inactive items from above categories	"Done", "paused", "no longer relevant"

Example: A Kubernetes article goes in Projects if deploying now, Areas if maintaining systems, Resources if just learning.

Folder Structure

1_Projects/           # Active work with deadlines
├── _INDEX.md         # Project overview
└── [Project-Name]/   # One folder per project

2_Areas/              # Ongoing responsibilities
├── _INDEX.md         # Area overview
└── [area-name].md    # One file per area (or folder if complex)

3_Resources/          # Reference material
├── _INDEX.md         # Resource overview
└── [topic]/          # Topic-based resources

4_Archive/            # Inactive items
├── _INDEX.md         # Archive overview
└── [archived items]  # Completed/inactive content

</essential_principles>

<initialization_check>

IMPORTANT: Before showing the intake menu, run this check.

The para script is at scripts/para relative to this SKILL.md file (not the working directory). Derive the absolute script path from this file's location:

• If this SKILL.md is at /path/to/para/SKILL.md
• Then the CLI is at /path/to/para/scripts/para

scripts/para status 2>/dev/null

If it exits non-zero or shows "Error: PARA root not configured", the user needs to initialize PARA first.

Do NOT proceed to intake. Instead:

1. Use AskUserQuestion to ask: "Where would you like to store your PARA files?"

   • Offer sensible options like ~/Notes, ~/Documents/PARA, or let them specify a custom path
   • Ask if this should be the default for all projects or just this repo

2. After getting the path, run:

   # Initialize PARA structure
   scripts/para init --path <user-specified-path>
   
   # Then save config (choose one):
   # For this repo only:
   scripts/para config --set-repo . <user-specified-path>
   # Or as global default:
   scripts/para config --set-root <user-specified-path>
   

3. Then proceed to the intake menu.

</initialization_check>

What would you like to do?

1. Categorize - Help deciding where something belongs
2. Review - Audit PARA structure for stale items
3. Create - Set up new project/area/resource folder
4. Archive - Move completed items to archive

Wait for response before proceeding.

Response	Workflow
1, "categorize", "where", "which category", "decide"	references/categorize.md
2, "review", "audit", "stale", "cleanup"	references/review.md
3, "create", "new", "add", "setup"	references/create.md
4, "archive", "done", "complete", "move"	references/archive.md
Other	Clarify intent, then select appropriate workflow

After reading the workflow, follow it exactly.

<quick_reference>

CLI Commands

PARA="scripts/para"

# Show PARA structure status
$PARA status

# Show/manage configuration
$PARA config

# Configuration options:
$PARA config --set-root ~/Notes           # Set global default
$PARA config --set-repo . ~/Notes/work    # Map current repo → PARA location
$PARA config --unset-repo .               # Remove repo mapping

# Create new project folder
$PARA project create "Project-Name"

# Archive a project
$PARA project archive "Project-Name"

# List projects
$PARA project list

Configuration Resolution

PARA root is resolved in order:

1. .para.toml in current git repo root (local override)
2. [repos] mapping in ~/.config/para/config.toml (per-repo)
3. para_root in global config (default)
4. Auto-discovery (walk up from cwd looking for PARA folders)

Decision Tree

Is this actively being worked on with a deadline?
├── YES → 1_Projects/
└── NO ↓

Is this an ongoing responsibility I maintain?
├── YES → 2_Areas/
└── NO ↓

Is this something I might reference later?
├── YES → 3_Resources/
└── NO ↓

Is this completed/inactive but worth keeping?
├── YES → 4_Archive/
└── NO → Delete it

</quick_reference>

<reference_index>

Domain Knowledge

All in references/:

• para-method.md - Full PARA methodology with examples
• decision-tree.md - PARA categorization decision tree
• common-mistakes.md - PARA anti-patterns and fixes
• complementary-skills.md - How GTD complements PARA (informational)

Workflows (agent-consumable instructions):

• categorize.md - Help decide where items belong
• review.md - Audit PARA structure for stale/misplaced items
• create.md - Create new PARA folders with proper structure
• archive.md - Move items to archive with proper handling

</reference_index>