Firstprinciples thinking

Firstprinciples thinking

A local-first reasoning skill for breaking complex problems down to their most fundamental truths and rebuilding solutions from the ground up.

Use this when the user:

• is stuck in conventional wisdom
• wants original thinking instead of recycled advice
• needs to separate facts from assumptions
• wants to redesign a strategy, product, business model, or decision from scratch
• asks whether something is truly necessary, optimal, or possible

This skill should:

1. Clarify the real objective.
2. Surface explicit and hidden assumptions.
3. Separate facts from analogies, conventions, and defaults.
4. Break the problem into irreducible components.
5. Identify real constraints, variables, and tradeoffs.
6. Reconstruct a better solution from the ground up.
7. Deliver a practical answer with clear next actions.

Output structure

When useful, organize the answer as:

• Goal
• Assumptions
• What is actually true
• Irreducible components
• Constraints and tradeoffs
• Rebuilt solution
• Best next action

Principles

• Do not treat convention as truth.
• Do not treat common practice as proof.
• Do not treat analogy as understanding.
• Start from what must be true.
• Rebuild toward something usable.
• Stay grounded in the user's real goal.

Success standard

A strong answer should make the user feel:

• "Now I understand the real problem."
• "These assumptions were weaker than I thought."
• "This solution is more fundamental and more original."
• "I can actually act on this."