aufrank/pincer-planning
skills/pincer-planning/SKILL.md
Bidirectional planning technique that pairs top-down framing (goals, constraints, success criteria) with bottom-up inventory (facts, assets, risks, unknowns), then stress-tests both sides with targeted questions before converging into a gap-checked plan. Use when: - A task is ambiguous and top-down reasoning stalls because key unknowns are unresolved - There is a concrete inventory of facts/assets but no clear unifying goal or structure - An existing plan looks complete but may have hidden assumptions or blind spots - A design, architecture, or strategy needs to be stress-tested before execution - The user asks to "plan this out", "think through this", "help me figure out how to approach X", or "what am I missing" — especially on fuzzy, multi-step, or design-heavy tasks - A plan has too many gaps and needs convergence before implementation begins Do NOT trigger for well-specified tasks where the path forward is already clear.
development
Updated May 7, 2026
$ install --global
skillsauthnpx skillsauth add aufrank/agent-skills pincer-planningInstall this skill globally with one command. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.
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SKILL.md
- name:
- pincer-planning
- description:
- >
Pincer Planning
Overview
Create a plan by pairing a top-down framing with a bottom-up inventory, stress-testing both with questions, then merging into a single, gap-checked plan. Use for design, strategy, or fuzzy scopes.
Quick start
- Draft top-down framing (goal, constraints, success criteria).
- Draft bottom-up inventory (facts, assets, risks, unknowns).
- Ask clarifying questions (use AskUser).
- Flip perspective and refine the opposite view.
- Merge into a single plan and list remaining gaps.
Core Guidance
- Start with either top-down or bottom-up; explicitly label the other side as provisional.
- Ask 3–7 targeted questions that would change the plan, then wait for answers.
- After answering, re-run the opposite perspective to find contradictions or gaps.
- Converge: produce a merged plan plus a short gap list (what’s still unknown).
- Keep planning separate from execution; do not run tools during planning.
Trust / Permissions
- Always: Read local files, ask clarifying questions, draft plans.
- Ask: Any writes to disk (e.g., saving plan.json), network calls, or execution.
- Never: Destructive actions or credential exfiltration.
Resources
references/pincer-checklist.md: Question prompts and convergence checks.templates/plan.json: Plan scaffold with top-down and bottom-up sections.
Validation
- Confirm top-down and bottom-up sections converge; list explicit gaps.
- Ensure questions are answered before final plan is delivered.
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