plan

Scope

Turn ideas into specs that AI tools can execute and stakeholders can evaluate.

When to Use This Skill

• Starting any new feature or product
• Before hiring developers or estimating costs
• When AI keeps building the wrong thing (unclear spec)
• When stakeholders need to review scope and budget

Choose Your Approach

Quick Feature Spec (10-15 minutes)

• Use for: Single features, iterations, additions
• Give to: AI tools (Claude Code, Lovable, Replit) to build directly
• See: QUICK-SPEC.md

Full Project Scope (1-2 hours)

• Use for: New products, major releases, stakeholder review
• Give to: Contractors, team members, budget planning
• See: PROJECT-SCOPE.md

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Quick Feature Spec Workflow

Use this checklist and complete each section:

Feature Spec Progress:
- [ ] Write what users will do (2-3 sentences)
- [ ] Show what it looks like (reference, screenshot, or description)
- [ ] Define happy path (3-5 steps)
- [ ] List edge cases (2-4 scenarios)
- [ ] Specify out of scope items
- [ ] Save to docs/specs/YYYY-MM-DD-feature-name.md

Section 1: What Users Will Do

Write 2-3 sentences describing user actions and outcomes.

Template:

Users can [ACTION] to [OUTCOME].
When they [DO THIS], they see [WHAT HAPPENS].
If [EDGE CASE], then [WHAT HAPPENS].

Example:

Users sign up with email/password, receive confirmation email, and log in to 
see their dashboard. They can reset forgotten passwords via email link.

Section 2: What It Looks Like

Pick ONE:

• Reference app: "Login like Linear - minimal, centered, email/password/button"
• Screenshot/sketch: Quick mockup or phone photo
• Description: "Card 400px wide, 'Welcome' header Inter 24px, two inputs, blue button"

Section 3: Happy Path

List 3-5 steps users take to complete the task.

Section 4: Edge Cases

List 2-4 scenarios where things don't go as planned and what happens.

Format:

- **[Scenario]:** [Response shown to user]