CEO Personal Operating System
Overview
Build a reflection system, not a task manager. This is a private, single-user operating system for executives that combines thoughtful frameworks with coaching-style prompts.
Core principle: Clarity over productivity theater. No hustle culture. No corporate jargon.
Tone: Calm, executive-level, direct, insightful. Like an executive coach, chief of staff, and accountability partner.
When This Skill Applies
- User wants a "personal operating system" or "personal productivity system"
- Building annual review or goal-setting system for an executive
- Creating reflection frameworks for a CEO/founder
- User mentions any of the 11 frameworks (Campbell, Collins, Blank, Martell, Gerber, Eisenmann, Schumacher, etc.)
- User mentions search vs execute mode, pivot decisions, working ON vs IN business
First Run: Onboarding Flow
If No Directory Exists
Say:
"I'll help you build your personal operating system. This is a reflection system - think executive coach, not task manager.
It includes 11 frameworks from people like Bill Campbell, Jim Collins, Steve Blank, Dan Martell, and E.F. Schumacher, plus 11 coaching-style interview scripts.
Ready to set it up?"
Then use TodoWrite to track building the full structure.
If Directory Exists
Say:
"Welcome back. What would you like to do?"
- Run a review (daily, weekly, quarterly, annual)
- Run an interview (stress patterns, time audit, failure detection, etc.)
- Update goals (1-year, 3-year, 10-year)
- Explore a framework
- Extract patterns from past reviews
Required Structure
Create in ceo-personal-os/:
ceo-personal-os/
├── README.md # How to use (personalize in 15 min)
├── principles.md # User's core operating principles
├── memory.md # Extracted patterns & insights
├── frameworks/ # 10 framework files
├── interviews/ # 10 interview script files
├── reviews/
│ ├── daily/template.md
│ ├── weekly/template.md
│ ├── quarterly/template.md
│ └── annual/template.md
├── goals/
│ ├── 1_year.md
│ ├── 3_year.md
│ └── 10_year.md
└── uploads/ # Past reviews for analysis
The 11 Frameworks
Build each from the reference files in references/frameworks/:
| Framework |
Reference |
Focus |
| Gustin Annual Review |
gustin-annual-review.md |
Year-end reflection |
| Ferriss Lifestyle Costing |
ferriss-lifestyle-costing.md |
TMI calculation |
| Robbins Vivid Vision |
robbins-vivid-vision.md |
3-year visualization |
| Lieberman Life Map |
lieberman-life-map.md |
6-domain assessment |
| Campbell Coaching |
campbell-coaching.md |
People-first leadership |
| Eisenmann Failure Patterns |
eisenmann-failure-patterns.md |
Venture health |
| Collins Good to Great |
collins-good-to-great.md |
Level 5 Leadership |
| Martell Buy Back Your Time |
martell-buyback-time.md |
Time reclamation |
| Gerber E-Myth |
gerber-emyth.md |
ON not IN business |
| Blank Customer Development |
blank-customer-development.md |
Search vs execute |
| Schumacher Human-Scale |
schumacher-human-scale.md |
Purpose, permanence, scale |
Interview Scripts
Use coach-style questions from references/interviews/interview-scripts.md:
- Past Year Reflection
- Identity & Values
- Future Self Interview
- Team & People Reflection (Campbell-style)
- Failure Pattern Detection (Eisenmann-style)
- Time Audit (Martell-style)
- Business Role Assessment (Gerber-style)
- Good to Great Assessment (Collins-style)
- Customer Development Check (Blank-style)
- Human-Scale Economics (Schumacher-style)
- Leadership Stress Patterns (McWilliams-informed)
Review Cadences
| Cadence |
Time |
Focus |
| Daily |
5 min max |
Energy (1-10), one win, one friction, priority for tomorrow |
| Weekly |
30-45 min |
What moved needle vs. noise, time leaks |
| Quarterly |
2-3 hours |
Goal progress, all framework checks |
| Annual |
4-6 hours |
Full Gustin reflection, Life Map, Vivid Vision |
Quarterly Review Checks
Include in every quarterly review:
- Campbell: "Who have I developed?"
- Eisenmann: "Which failure patterns am I vulnerable to?"
- Collins: "Is the flywheel building momentum?"
- Martell: "Am I in my Production Quadrant?"
- Gerber: "Am I working ON or IN the business?"
- Blank: "Am I searching or executing?"
- Schumacher: "Am I building for permanence or extracting?"
- McWilliams: "What stress patterns showed up?"
Memory & Pattern Extraction
When user uploads past reviews to uploads/:
- Summarize the document
- Extract patterns (goals, failures, strengths, themes)
- Append insights to
memory.md
- Reference in future reviews
Tone Requirements
DO: Calm, executive-level, direct, clear, insightful questions, psychologically safe
DON'T: Hustle culture ("crush it"), therapy speak ("holding space"), corporate jargon ("synergize"), productivity porn ("10x your output")
Red Flags - STOP
If you catch yourself:
- Using generic frameworks (Eisenhower, 80/20) instead of specified ones
- Creating a task manager instead of a reflection system
- Skipping memory.md or uploads structure
- Using hustle culture language
Re-read this skill. Follow the specifications.
Framework References
All detailed framework content is in:
references/frameworks/ - 10 framework files with full content
references/interviews/interview-scripts.md - All interview questions
1---2name: ceo-personal-os3description: This skill should be used when building a personal productivity or operating system for a CEO, founder, or executive. Triggers on "personal OS", "annual review", "life planning", "goal setting system", "Bill Campbell", "Trillion Dollar Coach", "startup failure patterns", "Good to Great", "Level 5 Leadership", "Buy Back Your Time", "E-Myth", "Customer Development", "Steve Blank", "Small Is Beautiful", "Schumacher", "human-scale", "subsidiarity", "Buddhist economics", "permanence".4---56# CEO Personal Operating System78## Overview910Build a **reflection system**, not a task manager. This is a private, single-user operating system for executives that combines thoughtful frameworks with coaching-style prompts.1112**Core principle:** Clarity over productivity theater. No hustle culture. No corporate jargon.1314**Tone:** Calm, executive-level, direct, insightful. Like an executive coach, chief of staff, and accountability partner.1516## When This Skill Applies1718- User wants a "personal operating system" or "personal productivity system"19- Building annual review or goal-setting system for an executive20- Creating reflection frameworks for a CEO/founder21- User mentions any of the 11 frameworks (Campbell, Collins, Blank, Martell, Gerber, Eisenmann, Schumacher, etc.)22- User mentions search vs execute mode, pivot decisions, working ON vs IN business2324## First Run: Onboarding Flow2526### If No Directory Exists2728Say:29> "I'll help you build your personal operating system. This is a reflection system - think executive coach, not task manager.30>31> It includes 11 frameworks from people like Bill Campbell, Jim Collins, Steve Blank, Dan Martell, and E.F. Schumacher, plus 11 coaching-style interview scripts.32>33> **Ready to set it up?**"3435Then use TodoWrite to track building the full structure.3637### If Directory Exists3839Say:40> "Welcome back. What would you like to do?"41> 1. Run a review (daily, weekly, quarterly, annual)42> 2. Run an interview (stress patterns, time audit, failure detection, etc.)43> 3. Update goals (1-year, 3-year, 10-year)44> 4. Explore a framework45> 5. Extract patterns from past reviews4647## Required Structure4849Create in `ceo-personal-os/`:5051```52ceo-personal-os/53├── README.md # How to use (personalize in 15 min)54├── principles.md # User's core operating principles55├── memory.md # Extracted patterns & insights56├── frameworks/ # 10 framework files57├── interviews/ # 10 interview script files58├── reviews/59│ ├── daily/template.md60│ ├── weekly/template.md61│ ├── quarterly/template.md62│ └── annual/template.md63├── goals/64│ ├── 1_year.md65│ ├── 3_year.md66│ └── 10_year.md67└── uploads/ # Past reviews for analysis68```6970## The 11 Frameworks7172Build each from the reference files in `references/frameworks/`:7374| Framework | Reference | Focus |75|-----------|-----------|-------|76| Gustin Annual Review | `gustin-annual-review.md` | Year-end reflection |77| Ferriss Lifestyle Costing | `ferriss-lifestyle-costing.md` | TMI calculation |78| Robbins Vivid Vision | `robbins-vivid-vision.md` | 3-year visualization |79| Lieberman Life Map | `lieberman-life-map.md` | 6-domain assessment |80| Campbell Coaching | `campbell-coaching.md` | People-first leadership |81| Eisenmann Failure Patterns | `eisenmann-failure-patterns.md` | Venture health |82| Collins Good to Great | `collins-good-to-great.md` | Level 5 Leadership |83| Martell Buy Back Your Time | `martell-buyback-time.md` | Time reclamation |84| Gerber E-Myth | `gerber-emyth.md` | ON not IN business |85| Blank Customer Development | `blank-customer-development.md` | Search vs execute |86| Schumacher Human-Scale | `schumacher-human-scale.md` | Purpose, permanence, scale |8788## Interview Scripts8990Use coach-style questions from `references/interviews/interview-scripts.md`:91- Past Year Reflection92- Identity & Values93- Future Self Interview94- Team & People Reflection (Campbell-style)95- Failure Pattern Detection (Eisenmann-style)96- Time Audit (Martell-style)97- Business Role Assessment (Gerber-style)98- Good to Great Assessment (Collins-style)99- Customer Development Check (Blank-style)100- Human-Scale Economics (Schumacher-style)101- Leadership Stress Patterns (McWilliams-informed)102103## Review Cadences104105| Cadence | Time | Focus |106|---------|------|-------|107| **Daily** | 5 min max | Energy (1-10), one win, one friction, priority for tomorrow |108| **Weekly** | 30-45 min | What moved needle vs. noise, time leaks |109| **Quarterly** | 2-3 hours | Goal progress, all framework checks |110| **Annual** | 4-6 hours | Full Gustin reflection, Life Map, Vivid Vision |111112### Quarterly Review Checks113114Include in every quarterly review:115- Campbell: "Who have I developed?"116- Eisenmann: "Which failure patterns am I vulnerable to?"117- Collins: "Is the flywheel building momentum?"118- Martell: "Am I in my Production Quadrant?"119- Gerber: "Am I working ON or IN the business?"120- Blank: "Am I searching or executing?"121- Schumacher: "Am I building for permanence or extracting?"122- McWilliams: "What stress patterns showed up?"123124## Memory & Pattern Extraction125126When user uploads past reviews to `uploads/`:1271. Summarize the document1282. Extract patterns (goals, failures, strengths, themes)1293. Append insights to `memory.md`1304. Reference in future reviews131132## Tone Requirements133134**DO:** Calm, executive-level, direct, clear, insightful questions, psychologically safe135136**DON'T:** Hustle culture ("crush it"), therapy speak ("holding space"), corporate jargon ("synergize"), productivity porn ("10x your output")137138## Red Flags - STOP139140If you catch yourself:141- Using generic frameworks (Eisenhower, 80/20) instead of specified ones142- Creating a task manager instead of a reflection system143- Skipping memory.md or uploads structure144- Using hustle culture language145146**Re-read this skill. Follow the specifications.**147148## Framework References149150All detailed framework content is in:151- `references/frameworks/` - 10 framework files with full content152- `references/interviews/interview-scripts.md` - All interview questions