Frequently asked questions about thinking, epistemology, and cognitive tools. 1647 answers
Trying to add a designed agent without identifying what it replaces. You tell yourself 'I'll start meditating in the morning' without acknowledging that morning already has an occupant — scrolling news, making coffee on autopilot, lying in bed replaying yesterday. The new behavior has nowhere to.
Every deliberate agent you create replaces an unconscious default.
Every agent has a trigger that activates it, a condition that validates it, and an action it takes.
Every agent has a trigger that activates it, a condition that validates it, and an action it takes.
When an agent handles a recurring decision you preserve energy for novel decisions.
When an agent handles a recurring decision you preserve energy for novel decisions.
When an agent handles a recurring decision you preserve energy for novel decisions.
When an agent handles a recurring decision you preserve energy for novel decisions.
When an agent handles a recurring decision you preserve energy for novel decisions.
Audit your last workday. List every recurring decision you made — what to eat, what to wear, which task to start with, how to respond to routine messages, when to take breaks. Count them. Now select the three most frequent and design an agent for each using the trigger-condition-action structure.
Automating decisions that should not be automated. Not every recurring decision is a good candidate for an agent. If the decision involves genuine novelty each time — a nuanced interpersonal judgment, a creative choice, a situation where context shifts meaningfully between instances — then forcing.
When an agent handles a recurring decision you preserve energy for novel decisions.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Select one agent you currently run — a rule, habit, or protocol you follow in recurring situations. Write it down exactly as it exists in your mind right now. Then apply the specificity test: (1) Can you identify the exact trigger — the observable event that should activate this agent? (2) Can you.
Confusing the feeling of having a plan with the reality of having a specific one. You say 'I have an agent for that' and feel the relief of having addressed the problem. But the agent is vague — 'When I feel stressed, I will take care of myself' — and because it lacks specificity, it never fires.
Vague agents do not fire reliably — specificity is required.
Internal agents run in your mind while external agents are embedded in tools and systems.