Concepts
The irreducible epistemic atoms underlying the curriculum. 4,828 atoms across 8 types
Tool audit
a periodic review of the entire tool stack that evaluates each tool for redundancy, gaps, misalignment with current workflows, and whether it still earns its place in the system
AI cognitive amplifier
an AI tool that extends human thinking capacity by handling tasks like search, synthesis, drafting, and pattern recognition at speeds and scales beyond unaided cognition, requiring skill to prompt and evaluate effectively
Environmental signaling
the phenomenon where every object and spatial arrangement in a physical space sends behavioral cues that affect cognition, emotion, and action below conscious awareness
Dedicated space
a physical location assigned exclusively to a single function or mode of work, preventing the role confusion and cognitive contamination that occurs when the same space serves competing purposes
Digital minimalism
the practice of maintaining a clean digital environment with minimal open applications, tabs, and notifications, based on the principle that every digital element visible on screen claims attentional resources
Pattern
a recurring behavioral, cognitive, or relational sequence that operates below conscious awareness and can be made manipulable through naming
Ergonomics
the science of designing work environments and tools to fit human physical capabilities, preventing both musculoskeletal injury and the cognitive decline that accompanies sustained physical discomfort
Environmental trigger
a designed spatial cue that automatically activates an associated behavior upon entering or encountering the space, leveraging context-dependent memory and classical conditioning to bypass deliberation
Reset ritual
a structured end-of-session practice that returns the workspace to its starting state, ensuring the next session begins with a clean environment rather than inheriting the previous session's clutter
Portable environment elements
the subset of environmental factors that most strongly influence cognitive performance and can be recreated in any location, enabling consistent work quality regardless of physical setting
Theory of constraints
a systematic methodology for improving systems by identifying the single constraint (bottleneck) that limits throughput and applying a five-step focusing process: identify, exploit, subordinate, elevate, and repeat
Exploit the bottleneck
the second step in the theory of constraints where the goal is to maximize the output of the existing bottleneck before investing in additional capacity, ensuring no capacity is wasted through idle time or suboptimal use
Subordination
the third step in the theory of constraints where all non-bottleneck parts of a system are adjusted to support the bottleneck's rhythm rather than running at their own independent maximum pace
Decision bottleneck
a constraint in a system caused by delayed decisions, where everything downstream of the pending decision waits, making decision latency a throughput-limiting factor
Bottleneck journal
a structured tracking practice that records bottlenecks encountered over time, enabling pattern analysis to distinguish chronic constraints from shifting ones and inform system redesign
Sustainable pace
a rate of work output that can be maintained indefinitely without degradation of quality, health, or wellbeing, which produces more total output over time than periodic high-intensity sprints followed by recovery
Cross-domain pattern
a structural tendency that appears in at least three life domains (work, relationships, health, thinking) and is not an artifact of any single context, but rather a feature of how one operates as a system.
Commitment-to-capacity ratio
the quantitative relationship between active commitments and actual available capacity, which must be maintained below 1.0 to prevent overcommitment and quality degradation
Capacity buffer
a reserve of uncommitted capacity deliberately held back from allocation to absorb unexpected demands, based on the principle that operating at 100% utilization leaves zero margin for variability
Load balancing
the practice of distributing work evenly across time periods (days, weeks) rather than clustering it, reducing peak stress and maintaining consistent output quality
Type-specific capacity
the recognition that cognitive capacity is not a single unified resource but varies by work type — creative, analytical, and social work each draw from partially independent pools with different depletion and recovery rates
Capacity dashboard
a simple visual display showing current commitments versus available capacity, designed to make overcommitment risk visible before it occurs rather than after quality has already degraded
Growth-maintenance capacity split
the recognition that available capacity must be allocated between maintaining existing commitments and developing new capabilities, where neglecting either produces either stagnation or collapse
Paradox of reduced commitments
the counterintuitive finding that doing fewer things often produces more total output because each commitment receives adequate resources, attention, and quality effort