# Trigger Action Planning

> CFAR rationality technique for installing reliable automatic behaviors by pairing specific triggers with specific actions. Based on implementation intentions research (0.65 SD effect size). Use when the user: (1) wants to build a new habit or change a behavior, (2) knows what they should do but keeps forgetting or failing to act, (3) wants to install a specific response to a recurring situation, (4) needs to bridge the gap between intention and action, (5) wants to automate a rationality technique so it fires reliably, or (6) wants to practice creating and installing TAPs. Triggers: "TAP", "trigger action", "implementation intention", "habit", "when I notice", "if-then plan", "I keep forgetting to", "I want to start doing", "build a habit", "behavior change", "CFAR".

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

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# Trigger-Action Planning (TAPs)

A CFAR technique for installing reliable automatic behaviors by pairing specific sensory triggers with specific physical actions. Based on Gollwitzer's implementation intentions research showing a 0.65 standard deviation effect size — one of the most robust findings in behavioral psychology.

## Three Modes

1. **Design Mode** — Design TAPs for a life domain; identify good trigger-action pairs
2. **Practice Mode** — Install a TAP through mental rehearsal and real-world practice
3. **Execute Mode** — Create and install a TAP for a real behavior the user wants to change

## Why TAPs Work

The brain is a pattern-matching machine. TAPs exploit this: by vividly rehearsing "When X happens, I do Y," you create a cached response that fires automatically when the trigger occurs. The key insight: **willpower is unreliable, but triggers are automatic**.

The research shows implementation intentions ("When situation X arises, I will perform response Y") approximately double the likelihood of following through on intentions.

## Core Process

### Step 1: Identify the Desired Behavior
"What do you want to start doing, stop doing, or do differently?"

Get specific. "Exercise more" is not a TAP. "Do 5 pushups" is actionable.

### Step 2: Find the Right Trigger

The trigger must be:
- **Sensory and concrete**: Something you can literally see, hear, or feel. Not "when I feel motivated."
- **Reliable**: It actually happens consistently in the relevant context.
- **Narrow**: Specific enough that it doesn't fire constantly. "When I open my laptop" fires too often.
- **Proximate**: Close in time and space to when you want the action to happen.

**Trigger quality checklist**:
- Can you literally point to the moment this trigger fires? (sensory test)
- Does this trigger happen every time you'd want the action? (reliability test)
- Does this trigger happen ONLY when you'd want the action? (specificity test)
- Is there a gap between trigger and action where you might get distracted? (proximity test)

**Examples of good triggers**:
- "When I reach for the door handle to leave the apartment" (sensory, narrow, reliable)
- "When I sit down at my desk and see my monitor turn on" (sensory, specific)
- "When I notice my hand reaching for my phone during a conversation" (sensory, narrow)

**Examples of bad triggers**:
- "When I feel stressed" (not sensory — how do you know you're stressed?)
- "In the morning" (too vague — when exactly?)
- "When I have free time" (not concrete — you'll never notice this moment)

### Step 3: Define the Action

The action must be:
- **Small and concrete**: 5 seconds to start, no ambiguity about what to do
- **Physical**: Involves your body doing something specific
- **Immediate**: Happens right after the trigger, no delay

Convert abstract actions to physical ones:
- "Be more mindful" → "Take three slow breaths"
- "Check my priorities" → "Open my task list and read the top item aloud"
- "Be nicer to my partner" → "Say one specific thing I appreciate about them"

### Step 4: Stress-Test the TAP

Run through failure scenarios:
- "What if the trigger fires but you're busy?" → Make the action smaller
- "What if you notice the trigger but don't feel like doing the action?" → The action is too big
- "What if the trigger doesn't fire reliably?" → Find a more concrete trigger
- "What if there's a 30-second gap between trigger and action?" → Find a more proximate trigger

### Step 5: Mental Rehearsal (Critical)

This is where installation actually happens:

1. Close your eyes (or just visualize vividly)
2. Imagine the trigger in full sensory detail — what you see, hear, feel
3. Imagine yourself noticing the trigger
4. Imagine performing the action immediately
5. Repeat 3-5 times, making it more vivid each time

**The rehearsal IS the installation.** Skipping this step is like writing code but never running it.

### Step 6: Real-World Practice

Within the first 24 hours:
1. Deliberately create the trigger situation (if possible)
2. Practice the full trigger → action sequence 3-4 times
3. After each practice, briefly note: Did it fire? Was the action easy? Any friction?

**Example**: TAP for not locking yourself out: "When I walk toward the front door → pat my pocket for keys." Practice: walk to the door 3-4 times and pat your pocket each time. By the 4th time, it should feel automatic.

## TAP Diagnostic Framework

When a TAP isn't working, diagnose:

| Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
|---------|-------------|-----|
| Trigger fires but you don't act | Action too big or aversive | Make action smaller |
| You forget the TAP exists | Trigger not sensory enough | Find a more concrete trigger |
| TAP fires at wrong times | Trigger too broad | Narrow the trigger |
| TAP works sometimes | Trigger unreliable | Find a more consistent trigger |
| Action feels forced | TAP conflicts with a value | Use Goal Factoring on the underlying motivation |
| TAP decays after a week | Insufficient rehearsal | Re-rehearse; add a maintenance TAP |

## Extended Exercise: 5 TAPs

Install 5 TAPs in one session:

1. **Awareness TAP**: "When I notice [unwanted pattern] → I pause and name it"
2. **Transition TAP**: "When I [finish one activity] → I [start the next one intentionally]"
3. **Social TAP**: "When someone [does X] → I [respond with Y]"
4. **Rationality TAP**: "When I notice [cognitive bias symptom] → I [apply technique]"
5. **Self-care TAP**: "When I [notice fatigue/stress signal] → I [take specific small action]"

For each: define trigger, define action, stress-test, rehearse 3-5 times, practice in real world within 24 hours.

## WOOP Integration

TAPs combine naturally with Gabriele Oettingen's WOOP framework:
- **W**ish: What do you want?
- **O**utcome: Imagine the best outcome vividly
- **O**bstacle: What internal obstacle might prevent it?
- **P**lan: "When [obstacle], then [action]" — this IS a TAP

The WOOP framework adds motivation (the positive visualization) to the TAP's reliability (the if-then plan).

## Technology-Assisted TAPs

Some TAPs can be augmented with technology:
- **Location-based reminders**: Phone notification when arriving at a location (trigger assist)
- **Time-based reminders**: Scheduled notification as a trigger for the action
- **Environment design**: Physical cues placed at trigger points (sticky notes, objects)
- **Accountability**: Share TAP with someone who'll ask about it (social trigger)

When designing tech-assisted TAPs, the technology replaces or reinforces the trigger — the action should still be a specific physical behavior.

## Common Failure Modes

- **Vague triggers**: "When I'm stressed" isn't sensory. "When I notice my shoulders are up by my ears" is.
- **Ambitious actions**: "Do a 30-minute workout" won't fire. "Do 5 pushups" will.
- **Skipping rehearsal**: Mental rehearsal is not optional. It's the mechanism.
- **Too many at once**: Install 1-3 TAPs at a time. More creates interference.
- **No maintenance**: TAPs decay. Re-rehearse weekly until they're deeply automatic.
- **Wrong level of abstraction**: If the TAP requires judgment calls ("assess the situation"), it's too abstract.

## Integration

- **Goal Factoring**: Factor goals to identify where TAPs would be most valuable
- **Murphyjitsu**: Stress-test TAPs by imagining failure modes
- **Aversion Factoring**: When a TAP feels aversive, factor the aversion before trying to force it
- **Resolve Cycles**: Use a 5-minute resolve cycle to design and rehearse a TAP
- **Hamming Questions**: Identify the highest-value behaviors to install as TAPs