Getting it into your agent
One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.
npx skills add machinarii/awesome-mental-models --skill awesome-mental-modelsgit clone --depth 1 https://github.com/machinarii/awesome-mental-modelsWrote this? Show the measurements
A badge with what this costs and how it scanned, read live from this page, so it follows the numbers instead of freezing them. Markdown for a README, HTML for a documentation site or a project page.
[](https://agentmods.dev/skills/machinarii/awesome-mental-models/awesome-mental-models)<a href="https://agentmods.dev/skills/machinarii/awesome-mental-models/awesome-mental-models"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/skills/machinarii/awesome-mental-models/awesome-mental-models/github.svg" alt="Measured on agentmods" height="20"></a>Or the 80×15 button, for a site that already has a row of RSS and ATOM ones. Only the verdict fits; the numbers stay here.
<a href="https://agentmods.dev/skills/machinarii/awesome-mental-models/awesome-mental-models"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/skills/machinarii/awesome-mental-models/awesome-mental-models.svg" alt="Reviewed on agentmods" width="80" height="20"></a>What it costs to keep this loaded
Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.
| Model | Per session | Once invoked |
|---|---|---|
| Fable 5.1 | $0.00127 | $0.01711 |
| Opus 5.5 | $0.00051 | $0.00684 |
| Sonnet 5.5 | $0.00025 | $0.00342 |
| Haiku 4.5 | $0.00013 | $0.00171 |
Grade B, and why
awesome-mental-models scanned grade B with 1 finding against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 1mo ago.
A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.
Strips warnings and disclaimersmediumAnti-refusal
Omitting safety caveats hides risk from the user and is a common jailbreak preamble.
- Never lecture from the file. Convert every step into a question about *their* problem. How it starts
The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 124 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.
Awesome Mental Models
Pick the right mental model for the user's situation, then guide them through it as a working session — not a lecture.
The model files live at {{REPO_ROOT}}/mental-models/<slug>.md. The category index is at {{REPO_ROOT}}/mental-models.md. Each file has Overview, How to Use It, Example, Takeaway, Source. Use How to Use It as the spine of facilitation.
Order of operations: run Phase 0 FIRST — before consulting When-to-Use, When-NOT-to-Use, or any selection table. Even if the user's words match trigger phrases, Phase 0 runs first.
Phase 0 — Stakes Check (silent, gating)
Before doing anything else, silently answer:
- (a) Is this reversible within a week with no lasting cost?
- (b) Is the cost of being wrong less than an afternoon of work?
- (c) Is the user not asking for a framework — they want a quick take?
If (a) AND (b) are both YES, OR (c) is YES → bypass the protocol. Do NOT load a model.
Reply directly in 2–3 sentences answering the underlying question. Mention the framework option only if asked; do not narrate the bypass — just answer.
Only proceed to Phase 1 if a model would actually earn its keep.
When to Use
- User describes a real situation needing structured judgment
- Words like: decide, plan, prioritize, evaluate, fix, understand, communicate, learn, negotiate
- User explicitly asks for a model or framework
- User seems stuck, rationalizing, or asking "am I thinking about this right?"
When NOT to Use
- Pure factual questions ("what's X?")
- User has already named a model and wants the file content — just open
mental-models/<slug>.md - Cheap, reversible, low-stakes choice — running a model is overkill
The 5-Phase Protocol
- Frame — Restate the situation explicitly capturing all four:
- Goal (what is the user trying to do?)
- Stakes & reversibility (1-way door or 2-way door? Cost of being wrong?)
- Deadline (when must this be decided/done?)
- Decider / who's involved (solo, team, stakeholders, adversary?)
What ships with it
2 files beside SKILL.md in the same directory: the scripts, references and assets a skill reads on demand. Not counted in the per-session cost; read them before you install if any of them is executable.
What this file has done since we first saw it
Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.
- 1mo ago First seen · 124 lines · 127 tokens per session scan B bff31ef43834
awesome-mental-models is a skill published in the GitHub repository machinarii/awesome-mental-models (5 stars, last pushed 5mo ago), licensed MIT. It adds 127 tokens to every session and 1,711 once invoked, about $0.0005 per session on Opus 5.5. A static security scan graded it B with 1 finding (strips warnings and disclaimers). No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-31.
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