ethoslisted

# /ethos — Core Development Principles > Understand · Build · Validate When invoked, remind of these principles. Use as grounding before significant work. ## The Seven Principles ### 1. Understand Before You Act Read existing code before modifying. Map the territory before changing it. > "Weeks of coding can save hours of planning." ### 2. Small, Reversible Steps Atomic commits. Small PRs. Refactor before adding. > "Make the change easy, then make the easy change." — Kent Beck ### 3. Tests as Specification Tests document intent. Code documents implementation. ### 4. Explicit Over Implicit Declare dependencies. Name things for what they do. Configuration over invisible convention. ### 5. Optimize for Change Code is read 10x more than written. Coupling is the enemy. Delete freely. ### 6. Fail Fast, Recover Gracefully Validate at boundaries. Crash on programmer errors. Handle user errors. ### 7. Automation as Documentation Scripts encode knowledge. CI runs what developers run. Automate the repeated. ## When Stuck 1. What problem am I actually solving? 2. What's the simplest thing that could work? 3. What would I do if I had to delete this in a month? 4. Am I building for today or for imaginary tomorrow? ## MECE — Structure for Clarity **Mutually Exclusive** (no overlap) + **Collectively Exhaustive** (no gaps). Apply everywhere: | Domain | MECE means | |--------|-----------| | **Skills** | Each skill has one clear purpose, no overlap | | **Functions** | Each functi