Planning

Planning Guidelines

Workflow for project planning, architecture decisions, and technical design.

When to Use

• Starting new projects
• Choosing technologies/frameworks
• Designing system architecture
• Planning refactoring efforts
• Making technical decisions
• Evaluating trade-offs

Planning Process

1. Understand Requirements

Ask:

• What problem are we solving?
• Who are the users?
• What are the constraints? (time, performance, scale)
• What are the non-negotiables?

2. Define Success Criteria

Establish:

• Measurable outcomes
• Performance targets
• Quality standards
• Timeline constraints

3. Choose Technologies

Decision Framework

Evaluate based on:

1. Type-safety: Does it support e2e type-safety?
2. Developer experience: How easy to use and maintain?
3. Ecosystem: Libraries, tools, community support?
4. Performance: Meets requirements?
5. Team knowledge: Learning curve vs timeline?

Prefer Technologies That Support

• e2e type-safety
• Built-in observability/monitoring
• Active maintenance
• Strong TypeScript support
• Testing capabilities

4. Design Architecture

Core Principles

• KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid)
• YAGNI (You Aren't Gonna Need It)
• Avoid premature optimization
• No over-engineering

Architecture Checklist

• e2e type-safety (API → Database)
• Error monitoring/observability
• Automated testing strategy
• Accessibility (a11y, WCAG 2.0)
• Security (OWASP best practices)
• Scalability path (if needed)

Common Patterns

Frontend (React)

• React Query for data fetching
• Suspense boundaries for loading states
• Error boundaries with retry
• TypeScript strict mode
• Component library (shadcn/ui, etc.)

Backend (Node.js/TypeScript)

• Query builder (Prisma, Drizzle, Kysely)
• Type-safe API layer (tRPC, GraphQL)
• Error monitoring (Sentry, LogRocket)
• Validation library (Zod, Yup)

Database

• Choose based on data model:
  • Relational: PostgreSQL (with Prisma/Drizzle)
  • Document: MongoDB (with type-safe client)
  • Key-value: Redis
• Prioritize type-safe query builders

5. Plan Structure

File Organization

src/
├── features/          # Feature-based organization
│   ├── auth/
│   ├── payments/
│   └── users/
├── lib/              # Shared utilities
├── types/            # Shared types
└── config/           # Configuration

Principles:

• Co-locate related files
• Feature-based over layer-based
• No premature abstraction
• Single-file folders should be files

Naming Strategy

Plan for:

• Descriptive, specific names
• Consistent conventions (kebab-case files, camelCase functions)
• Context through nesting
• No abbreviations

6. Plan Testing Strategy

Coverage Goals

• Critical paths: 100%
• Business logic: 80%+
• UI components: Key interactions

Test Types

• Unit: Pure functions, utilities
• Integration: API endpoints, database queries
• E2E: Critical user flows

Testing Rules

• Test behavior, not implementation
• Write tests for bugs before fixing
• Use descriptive test names (3rd person verbs)

7. Plan Observability

Monitoring Requirements

• Error tracking (Sentry, Rollbar)
• Performance monitoring (Web Vitals)
• User analytics (if applicable)
• Logging strategy
• Alerting thresholds

Instrumentation

• Use Higher Order Functions for monitoring
• Consistent error formatting
• Structured logging
• Performance profiling hooks

8. Security Planning

OWASP Checklist

• Input validation
• SQL injection prevention (query builders)
• XSS prevention
• CSRF protection
• Authentication/authorization
• Secure dependencies
• Environment variables handling

9. Accessibility Planning

WCAG 2.0 Guidelines

• Keyboard navigation
• Screen reader support
• Color contrast
• Focus indicators
• ARIA labels
• Semantic HTML

Decision Making

Technology Choices

When to Choose

Simple projects:

• Stick to basics
• Proven technologies
• Minimal dependencies

Complex projects:

• Invest in type-safety
• Strong tooling
• Robust ecosystem

Red Flags

• No TypeScript support
• Poor documentation
• Inactive maintenance
• Complex API for simple tasks
• Requires many plugins

Avoid Over-Engineering

Signs of Over-Engineering

• Abstractions used once
• Frameworks for simple tasks
• Premature optimization
• Complex patterns for simple problems
• "Future-proofing" without requirements

Keep It Simple

• Start minimal, add as needed
• One abstraction layer at a time
• Refactor when patterns emerge (2-3 uses)
• Concrete before abstract

Planning Document Template

Structure technical plans as:

Project: [Name]

Goal

[One paragraph: what and why]

Success Criteria

• [Measurable outcome 1]
• [Measurable outcome 2]

Technology Stack

• Frontend: [Choice + justification]
• Backend: [Choice + justification]
• Database: [Choice + justification]
• Hosting: [Choice + justification]

Architecture

[High-level diagram or description]

Key decisions:

File Structure

[Proposed structure]

Testing Strategy

• Unit: [Scope]
• Integration: [Scope]
• E2E: [Scope]

Observability

• Error tracking: [Tool]
• Monitoring: [Tool]
• Logging: [Strategy]

Security

• [Key consideration 1]
• [Key consideration 2]

Accessibility

• [Key consideration 1]
• [Key consideration 2]

Timeline

• Phase 1: [Scope + duration]
• Phase 2: [Scope + duration]

Risks

Review Before Starting

• Requirements clearly defined
• Success criteria measurable
• Technology choices justified
• Architecture supports requirements
• Type-safety end-to-end
• Testing strategy defined
• Observability planned
• Security considered
• Accessibility addressed
• Timeline realistic
• No over-engineering
• KISS and YAGNI applied

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