# Resolve Cycles

> CFAR rationality technique using 5-minute time-boxed problem-solving to break through procrastination and analysis paralysis. Use when the user: (1) is overthinking and needs to just try solving something, (2) is stuck in analysis paralysis, (3) needs permission to attempt something imperfect, (4) wants to build problem-solving momentum, or (5) has a "bug" (life problem) that might be solvable with focused effort. Triggers: "resolve cycle", "just try it", "5 minutes", "stop overthinking", "analysis paralysis", "stuck", "procrastinating", "yoda timer", "bug hunt", "CFAR".

- Skill: `equistamp/resolve-cycles` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add equistamp/resolve-cycles`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/equistamp/resolve-cycles/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: EquiStamp (https://skillmd.com/u/equistamp)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/equistamp/resolve-cycles

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# Resolve Cycles

A CFAR technique using 5-minute time-boxed problem-solving to break through inertia. Deceptively simple but empirically effective: set a timer, actually solve the problem, stop.

## Three Modes

1. **Design Mode** — Help identify which problems ("bugs") are good candidates for resolve cycles
2. **Practice Mode** — Run a resolve cycle on a low-stakes practice problem
3. **Execute Mode** — Facilitate a real resolve cycle on an active stuck point

## Why It Works

Most procrastination isn't laziness — it's activation energy. People optimize for the *appearance* of trying rather than the *reality* of solving. Resolve Cycles strip away this appearance-management:

- **5 minutes is "safe"** — low psychological cost to invest
- **Bounded urgency** — creates deadline pressure without excess demand
- **Permission to succeed** — explicitly gives permission to actually solve the problem
- **No meta-cognition** — the ticking clock eliminates second-guessing

## Core Process

### Cycle 1: Solve It
1. **Identify the bug**: Any problem worth improving
2. **Set a real timer**: 5 minutes, audible alarm (important — don't use silent timers)
3. **Start immediately**: Don't prepare, brief, or explain. Just start.
4. **Actually solve**: Focus exclusively on solving until the timer sounds

### Cycle 2: Plan It (if Cycle 1 didn't fully solve)
If incomplete, spend another 5 minutes creating an actionable plan where each step fits into a 5-minute resolve cycle.

## Facilitation Approach

- **Permission-giving**: "You have 5 minutes to solve this. Go."
- **Narrative reframing** (if stuck): "What if you'd receive a billion dollars for solving this in 5 minutes?"
- **Strip appearance**: "The goal is solving, not looking productive."
- **Frequency limit**: Don't do more than one per hour — loses potency with overuse.

## When to Use vs. Not

**Good for**: Getting unstuck, building momentum, small-to-medium problems, breaking analysis paralysis, procrastination on implementable tasks, situations where the blocker is permission rather than capability.

**Not good for**: Huge structural problems (use Goal Factoring to break down first), information-gathering (you genuinely lack knowledge), emotional blocks (use Focusing or IDC), complex multi-stakeholder decisions.

## Practice Exercise: Bug Hunt + Resolve

1. List 5 "bugs" in your life (anything that could be better)
2. Pick one that's medium-sized (not trivial, not massive)
3. Set 5-minute timer
4. Solve it
5. Debrief: What surprised you? Was it easier than expected?

## Common Failure Patterns

- **Over-ambition**: Choosing bugs that genuinely need 30+ min. Start medium.
- **Weak timer**: Use an audible alarm you can't dismiss
- **Pre-planning**: Strategizing instead of starting. Just start.
- **Performance anxiety**: Frame as "just try for 5 min," not "prove yourself"
- **Overuse**: Max one per hour for sustained effectiveness

## Integration

- **Goal Factoring**: Break large problems into resolve-cycle-sized pieces
- **TAPs**: Set up resolve cycles as responses to specific procrastination triggers
- **Hamming Questions**: Use Hamming to identify which bugs matter most, then resolve cycle them
- **Murphyjitsu**: After solving, stress-test the solution