instinctlisted

# /instinct — Pattern Lifecycle Instincts are lightweight engineering patterns — observations that accumulate confidence and promote to skills when mature. They live in `.claude/instincts.md` as the project's persistent lexicon. ## Record an Instinct When you observe a recurring pattern during work: 1. Read `.claude/instincts.md` 2. Check if the pattern already exists — if so, bump `Times seen` and adjust `Confidence` 3. If new, append an entry under `## Instincts`: ```markdown ### [descriptive title] - **Observed**: [YYYY-MM-DD] - **Times seen**: 1 - **Confidence**: low - **Context**: [where/when — e.g., "during API integration swarms"] - **Pattern**: [what happens — e.g., "workers duplicate auth setup across worktrees"] - **Action**: [what to do — e.g., "extract shared auth config to a setup script"] - **Status**: active ``` ## Confidence Levels | Level | Criteria | Next step | |-------|----------|-----------| | `low` | Seen 1 time, single context | Validate in future work | | `medium` | Seen 2 times across different contexts | Continue tracking | | `high` | Seen 3+ times, consistent pattern | Propose skill promotion | ## Validate Instincts During post-swarm analysis (Phase 6) or `/scout` runs: 1. Read `.claude/instincts.md` 2. For each `active` instinct, check if it was re-observed 3. If yes: increment `Times seen`, upgrade `Confidence` if threshold met 4. If contradicted: mark `Status: retired` with a note 5. Propose new instincts for patterns not yet captured