danielmiessler
First principles analysis. USE WHEN first principles, fundamental, root cause, decompose. SkillSearch('firstprinciples') for docs.
bunx add-skill danielmiessler/personal_ai_infrastructure -s FirstPrinciplesLoadingβ¦
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~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/SKILLCUSTOMIZATIONS/FirstPrinciples/
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Send voice notification:
curl -s -X POST http://localhost:8888/notify \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"message": "Running the WORKFLOWNAME workflow in the FirstPrinciples skill to ACTION"}' \
> /dev/null 2>&1 &
Output text notification:
Running the **WorkflowName** workflow in the **FirstPrinciples** skill to ACTION...
This is not optional. Execute this curl command immediately upon skill invocation.
Foundational reasoning methodology based on Elon Musk's physics-based thinking framework. Deconstructs problems to fundamental truths rather than reasoning by analogy.
Reasoning by Analogy (default, often wrong):
Reasoning from First Principles (this skill):
Route to the appropriate workflow based on the request.
When executing a workflow, output this notification directly:
Running the **WorkflowName** workflow in the **FirstPrinciples** skill to ACTION...
Workflows/Deconstruct.mdWorkflows/Challenge.mdWorkflows/Reconstruct.mdβββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββββ
β STEP 1: DECONSTRUCT β
β "What is this really made of?" β
β Break down to constituent parts and fundamental truths β
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β STEP 2: CHALLENGE β
β "Is this a real constraint or an assumption?" β
β Classify each element as hard/soft constraint β
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β STEP 3: RECONSTRUCT β
β "Given only the truths, what's optimal?" β
β Build new solution from fundamentals, ignoring form β
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When analyzing any system, classify constraints:
| Type | Definition | Example | Can Change? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hard | Physics/reality | "Data can't travel faster than light" | No |
| Soft | Policy/choice | "We always use REST APIs" | Yes |
| Assumption | Unvalidated belief | "Users won't accept that UX" | Maybe false |
Rule: Only hard constraints are truly immutable. Soft constraints and assumptions should be challenged.
Other skills invoke FirstPrinciples like this:
## Before Analysis
β Use FirstPrinciples/Challenge on all stated constraints
β Classify each as hard/soft/assumption
## When Stuck
β Use FirstPrinciples/Deconstruct to break down the problem
β Use FirstPrinciples/Reconstruct to rebuild from fundamentals
## For Adversarial Analysis
β RedTeam uses FirstPrinciples/Challenge to attack assumptions
β Pentester uses FirstPrinciples/Deconstruct on security model
Problem: "We need microservices because that's how modern apps are built"
First Principles Analysis:
Problem: "The firewall protects the internal network"
First Principles Analysis:
Problem: "Cloud hosting costs $10,000/month - that's just what it costs"
First Principles Analysis:
When using FirstPrinciples, output should include:
## First Principles Analysis: [Topic]
### Deconstruction
- **Constituent Parts**: [List fundamental elements]
- **Actual Values**: [Real costs/metrics, not market prices]
### Constraint Classification
| Constraint | Type | Evidence | Challenge |
|------------|------|----------|-----------|
| [X] | Hard/Soft/Assumption | [Why] | [What if removed?] |
### Reconstruction
- **Fundamental Truths**: [Only the hard constraints]
- **Optimal Solution**: [Built from fundamentals]
- **Form vs Function**: [Are we optimizing the right thing?]
### Key Insight
[One sentence: what assumption was limiting us?]
Attribution: Framework derived from Elon Musk's first principles methodology as documented by James Clear, Mayo Oshin, and public interviews.
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