Quarter Plan

Purpose

Set 3-5 strategic goals for the quarter. Runs at the start of each quarter (or mid-quarter if starting fresh).

Usage

• /quarter-plan — Plan current or upcoming quarter
• /quarter-plan next — Plan next quarter (run in last week of current quarter)

Step 0: Check if Quarterly Planning is Enabled

Read System/user-profile.yaml:

1. Check quarterly_planning.enabled value
2. If false or missing:
   • Display: "Quarterly planning is currently disabled. Would you like to enable it?"
   • If yes → Run onboarding questions (Step 0.5), then continue
   • If no → End command
3. If true: Continue to Step 1

Step 0.5: Quarterly Planning Onboarding (First Time)

"Quarterly planning helps you set 3-5 big goals every 3 months. Your weekly plans will then tie back to these goals.

When does your Q1 start?

1. January (calendar year)
2. February
3. April (common fiscal year)
4. Other month
5. I don't want quarterly planning"

Capture response:

• If 1-4: Save month to config
• If 5: Set enabled: false and end

Calculate quarter dates:

If Q1 starts in January:
  Q1: Jan-Mar, Q2: Apr-Jun, Q3: Jul-Sep, Q4: Oct-Dec
  
If Q1 starts in February:
  Q1: Feb-Apr, Q2: May-Jul, Q3: Aug-Oct, Q4: Nov-Jan
  
If Q1 starts in April:
  Q1: Apr-Jun, Q2: Jul-Sep, Q3: Oct-Dec, Q4: Jan-Mar

Save to System/user-profile.yaml:

quarterly_planning:
  enabled: true
  q1_start_month: 1  # 1=Jan, 2=Feb, 4=Apr, etc
  prompted: true

Step 1: Determine Target Quarter

Calculate current quarter based on q1_start_month:

• Example: If q1_start_month=1 and today is Jan 28:
  • Current quarter: Q1 2026
  • Quarter dates: 2026-01-01 to 2026-03-31

If no parameter or "current":

• Plan current quarter

If parameter is "next":

• Plan next quarter (for end-of-quarter planning)

Store:

• target_quarter: "Q1 2026"
• quarter_start: "2026-01-01"
• quarter_end: "2026-03-31"

Step 2: Context Gathering

Check for Last Quarter's Review

Look for 07-Archives/Reviews/[last-quarter].md:

If exists, extract:

• Completed goals
• Incomplete goals
• "Next Quarter Suggestions" section
• Key learnings

If missing:

• Note: No previous quarter review found
• This is likely first time using quarterly planning

Check Current Quarter Goals (if mid-quarter update)

If 01-Quarter_Goals/Quarter_Goals.md exists with current quarter:

• Read current goals
• Note progress made
• Ask if updating or replacing

Check Pillars

Read System/pillars.yaml:

• Strategic pillars
• Check recent activity across pillars
• Identify any neglected areas

Scan Recent Projects

Look at 04-Projects/ for active initiatives:

• What's in flight?
• What needs to land this quarter?
• Any new initiatives starting?

Check Career Goals (if Career system enabled)

Look for 05-Areas/Career/Growth_Goals.md:

If exists, extract:

• Long-term vision (1-3 years)
• Target role/level
• Development focus areas (skills to develop)
• Impact goals
• Career milestones

If missing:

• Skip this section (career system not initialized)

Step 3: Interactive Goal Setting

Review Last Quarter (if available)

"Last quarter (Q4 2025) goals were:

1. [Goal 1] — ✅ Completed
2. [Goal 2] — 🔄 In progress (80%)
3. [Goal 3] — ❌ Didn't finish

Anything to carry forward into this quarter?"

Wait for user input.

Present Context

"Looking at [Quarter] [Year] ([Start Date] - [End Date]):

Active projects:

• [Project 1]
• [Project 2]

Pillars to consider:

• [Pillar 1]: [Recent activity level]
• [Pillar 2]: [Recent activity level]
• [Pillar 3]: [Recent activity level]

If career goals exist, add:

Your career direction (1-3 years):

• Target role: [Role/Level from Growth_Goals.md]
• Skills to develop: [Key development areas]
• Impact you want: [Impact goals]

Keep these in mind as we plan this quarter — your quarterly goals should advance your career goals.

Then continue:

Let's work backwards from impact:

Imagine it's [Quarter End Date] and you're looking back on this quarter feeling incredibly happy with what you accomplished.

• What outcomes would accelerate your career and impact in your current role?
• What would you be proud to have delivered?
• What would matter most to the people you serve?

What are the 3-5 most important outcomes you want this quarter?"

Guide Goal Definition

For each goal (aim for 3-5):

"Goal [N]: What's the outcome?"

Then follow up:

• "Which pillar does this support?"
• "How will you measure success?"
• "What does 'done' look like?"
• "Any key milestones along the way?"

If career goals exist, also ask:

• "Does this goal help develop any skills you're targeting? (e.g., [skill1], [skill2] from your career plan)"
• "Does this advance your path to [target role]? How?"

Note responses for Phase 2 metadata.

Pillar Balance Check

After goals defined:

"Here's how your Q1 goals map to pillars:

• [Pillar 1]: [X] goals
• [Pillar 2]: [Y] goals
• [Pillar 3]: [Z] goals

Does this feel like the right balance?"

Allow adjustment.

Step 4: Archive Old Quarter Goals

If 01-Quarter_Goals/Quarter_Goals.md exists:

1. Determine the quarter it represents
2. Move to 07-Archives/Reviews/[old-quarter]-goals.md
3. Note: This preserves what was PLANNED vs what ACTUALLY happened (from review)

Step 5: Generate Quarter Goals

Use the create_quarterly_goal MCP tool for each goal collected in Step 3.

For each goal, call the tool with:

• title: Goal title
• pillar: Pillar ID
• success_criteria: What done looks like
• milestones: Array of milestone objects
• quarter: Quarter string (e.g., "Q1 2026")

If career goals exist, also include:

• career_goal_id: Which career goal this advances (from Growth_Goals.md)
• skills_developed: Array of skills this goal develops (e.g., ["System Design", "Technical Leadership"])
• impact_level: "high" (promotion evidence), "medium" (solid contribution), or "low" (tactical)

The MCP tool will generate markdown like:

---
quarter: Q1 2026
start_date: 2026-01-01
end_date: 2026-03-31
created: [timestamp]
---

# Q1 2026 Goals

**Jan 1 - Mar 31, 2026**

---

## 🎯 Quarter Objectives

### 1. [Goal 1 Title] — **[Pillar]**

**What success looks like:**
[Specific, measurable outcome]

**Key milestones:**
- [ ] [Milestone 1] — By [rough timing]
- [ ] [Milestone 2] — By [rough timing]

**Progress:** 0% 🔴

---

### 2. [Goal 2 Title] — **[Pillar]**

**What success looks like:**
[Specific, measurable outcome]

**Key milestones:**
- [ ] [Milestone 1]
- [ ] [Milestone 2]

**Progress:** 0% 🔴

---

### 3. [Goal 3 Title] — **[Pillar]**

**What success looks like:**
[Specific, measurable outcome]

**Key milestones:**
- [ ] [Milestone 1]
- [ ] [Milestone 2]

**Progress:** 0% 🔴

---

[Repeat for goals 4-5 if applicable]

---

## 📊 Pillar Alignment

| Pillar | Goals | Balance |
|--------|-------|---------|
| [Pillar 1] | [Goal numbers] | [# of goals] |
| [Pillar 2] | [Goal numbers] | [# of goals] |
| [Pillar 3] | [Goal numbers] | [# of goals] |

---

## 🔄 Carried From Last Quarter

[Items from Q4 2025 that are continuing]

- [ ] [Item] — [Context]

---

## 📝 Notes & Context

[Any additional context about the quarter]

---

## 🏁 End of Quarter

*Fill this in when running `/quarter-review`*

### Completed
- 

### Incomplete
- 

### Key Wins
- 

### Learnings
- 

---

*Generated: [timestamp]*
*Command: /quarter-plan*

Step 6: Summary & Next Steps

Display summary:

"Q1 2026 goals set and saved to 01-Quarter_Goals/Quarter_Goals.md

Your focus this quarter:

1. [Goal 1]
2. [Goal 2]
3. [Goal 3]

Pillar balance: [Note any imbalances]

Next steps:

• These goals will appear in your weekly planning
• Update progress notes as you make progress
• Run /quarter-review at end of quarter (Mar 31)

Ready to plan this week? Run /week-plan"

Integration Points

Called by /week-plan:

• Weekly planning reads from 01-Quarter_Goals/Quarter_Goals.md
• Prompts user to connect weekly priorities to quarterly goals

Updated manually:

• User can update progress percentages
• Check off milestones as they complete

Reviewed by /quarter-review:

• End of quarter review references these goals
• Compares plan vs actual accomplishment

Graceful Degradation

First Quarter

• No previous quarter to reference
• Start fresh with current context

Mid-Quarter Start

• Can run anytime
• Adjust goals for remaining time in quarter
• Note when goals were set

Disabled State

• Command prompts to enable
• Can enable at any time
• Doesn't affect weekly/daily planning

Track Usage (Silent)

Update System/usage_log.md to mark quarterly planning as used.

Analytics (Silent):

Call track_event with event_name quarter_plan_completed and properties:

• goals_count: number of goals set
• pillars_covered: number of pillars with goals

This only fires if the user has opted into analytics. No action needed if it returns "analytics_disabled".