nhouseholder/executing-plans

Executing Plans

Overview

Load plan, review critically, execute all tasks, report when complete.

Note: If subagents are available, use dispatching-parallel-agents for parallel execution of independent tasks.

The Process

Step 1: Load and Review Plan

1. Read plan file
2. Review critically - identify any questions or concerns about the plan
3. If concerns: Raise them with your user before starting
4. If no concerns: Create TodoWrite and proceed

Step 2: Execute Tasks

For each task:

1. Mark as in_progress
2. Follow each step exactly (plan has bite-sized steps)
3. Run verifications as specified
4. Mark as completed

Step 3: UNIFY — Reconcile Plan vs Actual

After all tasks complete, reconcile what was planned vs what actually happened:

1. Diff the plan — For each planned task, note: done as planned, modified (why), skipped (why), or added (why)
2. Record decisions — Any mid-execution judgment calls that diverged from the plan. Future sessions need to know WHY, not just WHAT.
3. Log deferred items — Anything discovered during execution that should be done but wasn't in scope. Add to a ## Deferred section in the plan file.
4. Flag drift — If >30% of tasks were modified or skipped, the plan had a gap. Note what information would have made the plan better.

This step prevents "plan says X but code does Y" confusion in future sessions.

Step 4: Complete Development

After UNIFY reconciliation:

• Announce: "I'm using the finishing-a-development-branch skill to complete this work."
• REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: Use superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch
• Follow that skill to verify tests, present options, execute choice

When to Stop and Ask for Help

STOP executing immediately when:

• Hit a blocker (missing dependency, test fails, instruction unclear)
• Plan has critical gaps preventing starting
• You don't understand an instruction
• Verification fails repeatedly

Ask for clarification rather than guessing.

When to Revisit Earlier Steps

Return to Review (Step 1) when:

• Partner updates the plan based on your feedback
• Fundamental approach needs rethinking

Don't force through blockers - stop and ask.

Remember

• Review plan critically first
• Follow plan steps exactly
• Don't skip verifications
• Reference skills when plan says to
• Stop when blocked, don't guess
• Never start implementation on main/master branch without explicit user consent

Integration

Required workflow skills:

• superpowers:using-git-worktrees - REQUIRED: Set up isolated workspace before starting
• superpowers:writing-plans - Creates the plan this skill executes
• superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch - Complete development after all tasks