How do I install the Gist Plan skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add majiayu000/gist-plan in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Gist Plan safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Independent scanners report: SkillSpector: PASS, Skill Scanner: PASS. Capability flags: docs only. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Gist Plan?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Gist Plan free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Gist Plan?

majiayu000 (@majiayu000) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Gist Plan by majiayu000 — Agent Skill

Name: Gist Plan
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: majiayu000

File contents

GIST Planning

Replace opinion-based roadmaps with evidence-guided planning. Source: Gilad (Evidence Guided).

Workflow

1. Set Goals (Quarterly)

Derive from North Star input metrics or OKRs
Format: "Improve [metric] from [current] to [target] by [date]"
Maximum 3 goals per quarter
Update canvas/gist.yml goals section

2. Generate Ideas (Ongoing)

Ideas are hypothetical ways to achieve goals
Most ideas fail (>80%) -- this is expected and planned for
Generate many, hold loosely
Store in canvas/gist.yml idea bank with ICE scores
Never commit to an idea until evidence supports it

3. Score with ICE + Confidence Meter

Use /ice-score to prioritize. ICE scoring (Ellis; confidence dimension added by Gilad):

Confidence is NOT gut feel -- it maps to evidence levels
0.1 = opinion only | 0.5 = data supports | 0.7 = tested | 0.9 = launched
Rescore after every experiment

Mycelium uses 0.0-1.0 (adapted from Gilad's 0-10 non-linear Confidence Meter). See /ice-score for details.

4. Design Steps (per top idea)

Steps are small, time-boxed activities that build evidence
Each step has: hypothesis, method, success criteria, MoSCoW priority
Tag each step as Must / Should / Could / Won't (DSDM):
- Must: Non-negotiable. Delivery fails without this. All REVIEW checks apply.
- Should: Important. Ship if time allows. All REVIEW checks apply.
- Could: Nice-to-have. Cut first when timebox runs out. NUDGE checks only.
- Won't: Explicitly out of scope for this cycle. Documented for future reference.
Steps follow a confidence ladder: assessment -> exploratory experiment -> feature experiment -> launch
Each step produces evidence that increases or decreases confidence
If evidence is negative: pivot or kill the idea (sunk cost is irrelevant)
For user-facing ideas, frame hypotheses in Lean UX format: "We believe [outcome] for [users] if [change]." (Gothelf)
When a delivery timebox is exceeded: Flex scope using MoSCoW — cut Could/Won't before compromising Must/Should

5. Execute Tasks (Sprint-level)

Tasks belong to the CURRENT step only
Don't plan tasks for future steps
Standard agile execution

6. Reprioritize (Continuous)

After each step completes:

Update ICE scores based on new evidence
Re-rank ideas
Kill ideas below threshold
Surface new ideas from discovery work

Shape Up: Appetite Over Estimates

Instead of asking "how long will this take?", ask "how much is this worth?" (Shape Up by Basecamp). Set an appetite — the maximum time you're willing to invest — then design the solution to fit within it. If the solution can't fit, narrow the scope, don't extend the timebox. This connects naturally to MoSCoW: appetite defines the timebox, MoSCoW decides what fits within it.

Anti-Pattern: The Feature Roadmap

If your GIST board looks like a feature list with dates, you're doing it wrong. Goals are outcomes, ideas are hypotheses, steps are experiments.

---name: gist-plandescription: GIST planning workflow. Structure goals into ideas, steps, and tasks using Gilad's evidence-guided framework.--- # GIST Planning Replace opinion-based roadmaps with evidence-guided planning. Source: Gilad (Evidence Guided). ## Workflow ### 1. Set Goals (Quarterly) - Derive from North Star input metrics or OKRs - Format: "Improve [metric] from [current] to [target] by [date]" - Maximum 3 goals per quarter - Update canvas/gist.yml goals section ### 2. Generate Ideas (Ongoing) - Ideas are hypothetical ways to achieve goals - Most ideas fail (>80%) -- this is expected and planned for - Generate many, hold loosely - Store in canvas/gist.yml idea bank with ICE scores - Never commit to an idea until evidence supports it ### 3. Score with ICE + Confidence Meter Use `/ice-score` to prioritize. ICE scoring (Ellis; confidence dimension added by Gilad): - Confidence is NOT gut feel -- it maps to evidence levels - 0.1 = opinion only | 0.5 = data supports | 0.7 = tested | 0.9 = launched - Rescore after every experiment > *Mycelium uses 0.0-1.0 (adapted from Gilad's 0-10 non-linear Confidence Meter). See `/ice-score` for details.* ### 4. Design Steps (per top idea) - Steps are small, time-boxed activities that build evidence - Each step has: hypothesis, method, success criteria, **MoSCoW priority** - Tag each step as **Must** / **Should** / **Could** / **Won't** (DSDM): - **Must**: Non-negotiable. Delivery fails without this. All REVIEW checks apply. - **Should**: Important. Ship if time allows. All REVIEW checks apply. - **Could**: Nice-to-have. Cut first when timebox runs out. NUDGE checks only. - **Won't**: Explicitly out of scope for this cycle. Documented for future reference. - Steps follow a confidence ladder: assessment -> exploratory experiment -> feature experiment -> launch - Each step produces evidence that increases or decreases confidence - If evidence is negative: pivot or kill the idea (sunk cost is irrelevant) - For user-facing ideas, frame hypotheses in Lean UX format: "We believe [outcome] for [users] if [change]." (Gothelf) - **When a delivery timebox is exceeded**: Flex scope using MoSCoW — cut Could/Won't before compromising Must/Should ### 5. Execute Tasks (Sprint-level) - Tasks belong to the CURRENT step only - Don't plan tasks for future steps - Standard agile execution ### 6. Reprioritize (Continuous) After each step completes: - Update ICE scores based on new evidence - Re-rank ideas - Kill ideas below threshold - Surface new ideas from discovery work ### Shape Up: Appetite Over Estimates Instead of asking "how long will this take?", ask "how much is this worth?" (Shape Up by Basecamp). Set an **appetite** — the maximum time you're willing to invest — then design the solution to fit within it. If the solution can't fit, narrow the scope, don't extend the timebox. This connects naturally to MoSCoW: appetite defines the timebox, MoSCoW decides what fits within it. ## Anti-Pattern: The Feature Roadmap If your GIST board looks like a feature list with dates, you're doing it wrong. Goals are outcomes, ideas are hypotheses, steps are experiments.

Frequently asked questions

Gist Plan