first-principles-decomposer

Included with Lifetime

$97 forever

Break any problem down to fundamental truths, then rebuild solutions from atoms up. Use when user says "firstp", "first principles", "from scratch", "what are we assuming", "break this down", "atomic", "fundamental truth", "physics thinking", "Elon method", "bedrock", "ground up", "core problem", "strip away", or challenges assumptions about how things are done.

General

What this skill does


# First Principles Decomposer

## When To Use
- Designing new products or features
- Feeling stuck on a complex problem
- Existing solutions seem overcomplicated
- Need to challenge assumptions
- Starting any new project or initiative

## The Process

### Phase 1: Identify Assumptions
Ask: "What am I assuming to be true that might not be?"
List every assumption embedded in the current approach.

### Phase 2: Break to Atoms
For each assumption, ask: "What is the most fundamental truth here?"
Keep asking "why?" until you hit bedrock facts.

### Phase 3: Rebuild From Truth
Starting ONLY from verified fundamentals, ask:
"What's the simplest solution that addresses the core need?"

## Interactive Flow

When user invokes this skill:

1. **Clarify the problem** (1-2 questions max)
2. **Surface assumptions** - list what's being taken for granted
3. **Decompose to fundamentals** - show the atomic truths
4. **Rebuild solution** - construct from ground up
5. **Compare** - show how this differs from conventional approach

## Output Format

```
PROBLEM: [stated problem]

ASSUMPTIONS IDENTIFIED:
1. [assumption] → Challenge: [why this might be wrong]
2. [assumption] → Challenge: [why this might be wrong]

FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS:
• [bedrock fact 1]
• [bedrock fact 2]
• [bedrock fact 3]

REBUILT SOLUTION:
[New approach built only from fundamentals]

VS CONVENTIONAL:
[How this differs from the obvious approach]
```

## Example Triggers
- "Break down our parent communication problem from first principles"
- "I want to rethink how we do [X] from the ground up"
- "What are we assuming about [problem] that might be wrong?"

## Integration

This skill compounds with:
- **inversion-strategist** - After rebuilding from fundamentals, invert to find what would guarantee failure of the new approach
- **second-order-consequences** - Project downstream effects of implementing the rebuilt solution
- **pre-mortem-analyst** - Stress-test the rebuilt solution by imagining its failure
- **six-thinking-hats** - Apply all six perspectives to validate each fundamental truth identified

## Skill Metadata
**Created**: 2026-01-06
**Last Updated**: 2026-01-06
**Author**: Artem
**Version**: 1.0

---
See references/framework.md for detailed methodology
See references/examples.md for Artem-specific examples
See references/integrated-frameworks.md for Stanford Design Thinking + MIT Systems Engineering combo

Files: 4

Size: 11.8 KB

Complexity: 29/100

Category: General

Source: https://github.com/sundial-org/awesome-openclaw-skills/tree/main/skills/first-principles-decomposer

Related in General

modeling-omnistudio-epc-catalog

Included

Salesforce Industries CME EPC product-modeling skill for Product2-based catalog creation. Use when creating EPC products, configuring product attributes, building offer bundles with Product Child Items, or reviewing EPC DataPack JSON metadata for product catalog changes. TRIGGER when: user creates or updates Product2 EPC records, AttributeAssignment payloads, AttributeMetadata/AttributeDefaultValues, Offer bundles, or ProductChildItem relationships. DO NOT TRIGGER when: designing OmniScripts/FlexCards/Integration Procedures (use building-omnistudio-omniscript, building-omnistudio-flexcard, or building-omnistudio-integration-procedure), implementing Apex business logic (use generating-apex), or troubleshooting deployment pipelines (use deploying-metadata).

Generalscripts

relationship-science-coach

Included

Use this skill for direct, practical adult relationship coaching: couples conflict, repair, trust, marriage, dating, flirting, attachment patterns, emotional connection, sex, desire differences, eroticism, kink negotiation, affection, love languages, breakups, and long-term passion. Draw on Gottman, EFT and Hold Me Tight, attachment science, modern sex research, Perel, Nagoski, Kerner, Schnarch, Love and Stosny, and flexible love-language tools. Be concrete and low-hedge. Redirect only for imminent danger, abuse, coercive control, minors, non-consent, self-harm, stalking, or medical/legal/psychiatric decisions.

Generalscripts

building-sf-integrations

Included

Salesforce integration architecture and runtime plumbing with 120-point scoring. Use this skill to set up Named Credentials, External Credentials, External Services, REST/SOAP callout patterns, Platform Events, and Change Data Capture. TRIGGER when: user sets up Named Credentials, External Services, REST/SOAP callouts, Platform Events, CDC, or touches .namedCredential-meta.xml files. DO NOT TRIGGER when: Connected App/OAuth config (use configuring-connected-apps), Apex-only logic (use generating-apex), or data import/export (use handling-sf-data).

Generalscripts

venue-templates

Included

Access comprehensive LaTeX templates, formatting requirements, and submission guidelines for major scientific publication venues (Nature, Science, PLOS, IEEE, ACM), academic conferences (NeurIPS, ICML, CVPR, CHI), research posters, and grant proposals (NSF, NIH, DOE, DARPA). This skill should be used when preparing manuscripts for journal submission, conference papers, research posters, or grant proposals and need venue-specific formatting requirements and templates.

Generalscripts

let-fate-decide

Included

Draws the 12 Houses of the Zodiac Tarot spread to inject entropy into planning when prompts are vague, ambiguous, or casually delegated. Interprets the spread to guide next steps. Use when the user says 'let fate decide', 'YOLO', 'whatever', 'idk', or other nonchalant phrases, makes Yu-Gi-Oh references, or when you are about to arbitrarily pick between multiple reasonable approaches. Prefer over ask-questions-if-underspecified when the user's tone is casual or playful rather than precision-seeking.

Generalscripts

net-ops

Included

Cross-platform network troubleshooting (Windows, macOS, Linux) via local or remote shell. Use for: DNS broken, can't resolve hostnames, nslookup/dig works but apps fail, NRPT, WFP, scutil, /etc/resolver, systemd-resolved, /etc/resolv.conf, NetworkManager, VPN DNS leak residue (ProtonVPN/Mullvad/WireGuard/AnyConnect), AV/firewall blocking DNS or DoH, Tailscale DNS interaction, intermittent connectivity, remote diagnostics over SSH.

Generalscripts