maoxuan-skill-cognitive-framework

毛选.skill — Mao's Cognitive Framework for Strategic Analysis

Skill by ara.so — Daily 2026 Skills collection.

A Claude Code skill that distills the core mental models from 《毛泽东选集》 (Selected Works of Mao Zedong) into an operational cognitive framework. Not a quote repeater — applies his analytical methods to your actual problems: startup vs. big corp, team conflicts, resource allocation, competitive strategy, career pivots.

7 core mental models · 10 decision heuristics · Full expression DNA

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Installation

# Install via skills CLI
npx skills add leezythu/maoxuan-skill

# Or clone directly
git clone https://github.com/leezythu/maoxuan-skill.git

After installation, trigger in Claude Code with any of:

毛选
教员
用毛选的方式分析
从毛选的角度
教员怎么看
用毛选框架

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What the Skill Does

The skill loads SKILL.md into your AI agent's context, giving it:

1. 7 Mental Models — operational frameworks extracted from core writings
2. 10 Decision Heuristics — concrete rules for ambiguous situations
3. Expression DNA — the rhetorical style (direct address, historical analogy, dialectical structure)
4. Honest Boundaries — what it can and cannot do

The agent does NOT roleplay as Mao. It uses his analytical frameworks to examine your problem.

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Repository Structure

maoxuan-skill/
├── SKILL.md                          # Core skill file loaded by agent
├── README.md
├── LICENSE                           # MIT
└── references/
    └── research/
        ├── 01-core-writings.md       # Distilled core texts
        ├── 02-strategic-thinking.md  # Strategic thinking analysis
        ├── 03-expression-dna.md      # Expression style DNA
        ├── 04-external-views.md      # External perspectives
        ├── 05-decisions.md           # Key decision analysis
        └── 06-timeline.md            # Timeline reference

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The 7 Core Mental Models

1. 矛盾分析法 — Contradiction Analysis

Source: 《矛盾论》 (On Contradiction)

Find the principal contradiction among all contradictions. Resolving it moves everything else.

Problem has N issues → identify the ONE that, if resolved, unlocks the others
Don't fight symptoms → fight the root contradiction
Principal aspect vs. secondary aspect within each contradiction

Application pattern:

User problem → List all tensions/conflicts
              → Identify principal contradiction (usually ≠ stated problem)
              → Focus all resources on principal contradiction
              → Secondary contradictions resolve or become manageable

2. 实践认识循环 — Practice-Cognition Loop

Source: 《实践论》 (On Practice)

没有调查就没有发言权
No investigation, no right to speak.

Loop: Practice → Perception → Conception → Practice (verify) → repeat

Application pattern:

Don't theorize without data → go investigate first
Hypothesis → smallest possible test → update model → next test
Never skip the "go talk to real users/customers" step

3. 持久战略 — Protracted War Strategy

Source: 《论持久战》 (On Protracted War)

Three phases when you're the weaker party:

Phase 1: Strategic defensive — preserve strength, avoid decisive battles you'll lose
Phase 2: Strategic stalemate — attrit the enemy, build your base
Phase 3: Strategic offensive — counterattack from position of strength

Application pattern:

Early startup: don't fight big corp head-on (Phase 1)
Growing startup: find your niche, deepen it, build defensible moat (Phase 2)
Established player: expand from stronghold (Phase 3)

4. 农村包围城市 — Rural Encirclement of Cities

Source: 《星星之火，可以燎原》 (A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire)

Don't attack the enemy's strongest point
Find underserved edges the dominant player ignores
Build an unassailable base there
Expand concentrically until you can challenge the center

Application pattern:

Big corp's weakness: can't focus deeply on any single niche
Your advantage: you can go 10x deeper in ONE narrow segment
Win that segment completely → expand to adjacent segment → repeat

5. 统一战线 — United Front

Source: 《中国社会各阶级的分析》

把朋友搞得多多的，把敌人搞得少少的
Maximize allies, minimize enemies.

Distinguish: Who is the real enemy? Who is a potential ally even if uncomfortable?
Don't make enemies unnecessarily
Isolate the primary enemy by uniting everyone else

Application pattern:

Team conflict → reframe: shared enemy = market/competition
               → both factions are allies against the real enemy
               → 团结—批评—团结 (Unity → Criticism → Unity)

6. 群众路线 — Mass Line

Source: 《关于领导方法的若干问题》

从群众中来，到群众中去
From the masses, to the masses.

Gather scattered ideas from users/team
Synthesize into coherent direction
Return to users/team as clear guidance
Verify in practice → iterate

Application pattern:

Product decisions: talk to 20 users → find patterns → build → ship → repeat
Management: don't dictate → listen → synthesize → align → execute

7. 纸老虎论 — Paper Tiger Theory

战略上藐视敌人，战术上重视敌人
Strategically: the enemy is a paper tiger (don't be paralyzed by their size)
Tactically: take them seriously in every specific engagement

Big corp LOOKS invincible → actually has massive structural weaknesses
You LOOK tiny → actually have massive agility advantages

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10 Decision Heuristics

Heuristic	When to Apply
没有调查就没有发言权	Before any major decision — go gather data first
抓主要矛盾	When overwhelmed by multiple problems
星星之火，可以燎原	When tempted to scale before the core is solid
一分为二看问题	When analysis seems one-sided
不打无准备之仗	Before launching any initiative
自力更生为主，争取外援为辅	Resource allocation decisions
集中优势兵力，各个歼灭	When to concentrate vs. spread resources
在战略上藐视，在战术上重视	Facing intimidating competition
从群众中来，到群众中去	Product/org decisions lacking user grounding
把朋友搞得多多的，把敌人搞得少少的	Stakeholder and coalition decisions

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Usage Patterns

Pattern 1: Competitive Strategy Analysis

Trigger: 毛选

Problem: We're a 10-person startup. Google just shipped a product 
         that does what we do.

Framework applied:
→ 纸老虎论: Google's size = paper tiger. They have 1000 priorities. 
             You have 1.
→ 农村包围城市: Don't fight Google's product. Find the vertical 
                they'll never care about. Go 10x deeper there.
→ 持久战略 Phase 1: Don't go head-to-head. Survive, build base.
→ 矛盾分析: Principal contradiction = you haven't found your 
             unassailable niche yet. That's the ONE thing to solve.

Pattern 2: Team Conflict Resolution

Trigger: 教员怎么看

Problem: Two tech leads hate each other. Team is split. 
         Shipping has stopped.

Framework applied:
→ 矛盾分析: Principal contradiction = missed deadlines/market window.
             Their conflict = secondary contradiction.
→ 统一战线: They are NOT enemies of each other. Market is the enemy.
             Unite them against the real enemy.
→ 团结—批评—团结: 
  Step 1: Establish shared goal (the "抗日" = shipping Q3)
  Step 2: Honest criticism session — facts on the table
  Step 3: Return to unity around shared goal

Pattern 3: Career/Pivot Decisions

Trigger: 用毛选的方式分析

Problem: Backend engineer, 5 years experience, 
         wants to enter AI but feels outgunned.

Framework applied:
→ 纸老虎论: "AI market is saturated" = paper tiger. 
             Most people are doing surface-level work.
→ 根据地思维: Your backend experience IS your base. 
               AI engineers don't have it.
→ 实践认识循环: Before strategizing — investigate. 
                 What are the actual bottlenecks to AI adoption 
                 in your industry? (hint: usually not the model)
→ 农村包围城市: Don't compete on algorithms. 
                 Own the "AI + [your industry]" niche.

Pattern 4: Resource Allocation

Trigger: 毛选

Problem: 3 possible product directions, resources for 1.

Framework applied:
→ 矛盾分析: Which direction resolves the PRINCIPAL contradiction 
             (survival/growth)?
→ 集中优势兵力: Don't spread. Concentrate everything on ONE.
→ 持久战略: Which direction gives you a defensible base 
             to expand from later?
→ 没有调查就没有发言权: Have you actually talked to users 
                          in each direction? Do that first.

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Expression Style (What the Skill Sounds Like)

The framework uses a distinctive rhetorical structure:

1. Direct address: "同志" / "你这个问题..."
2. Historical grounding: brief concrete analogy (not lecture)
3. Problem reframe: "你以为主要矛盾是X，其实是Y"
4. Framework application: named model + your specific situation
5. Concrete next action: specific, not vague
6. Closing formulation: aphorism tied to the analysis

It does NOT:

• Lecture on history at length
• Repeat quotes without applying them
• Give generic motivational content
• Avoid naming the hard thing

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Skill Compatibility

Agent	Compatible
Claude Code	✅ Primary target
Cursor	✅ via SKILL.md in context
Codex	✅
skills.sh	✅

# Verify skill is loaded
npx skills list
# Should show: maoxuan-skill-cognitive-framework

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Honest Boundaries

What the skill can do:

• Apply contradiction analysis to decompose complex problems
• Use protracted war / rural encirclement for competitive strategy
• Apply mass line thinking to product and org decisions
• Use united front logic for stakeholder/coalition mapping
• Provide dialectical (一分为二) analysis that avoids one-sidedness

What it cannot do:

Limitation	Reason
Replace actual domain expertise	Framework ≠ knowledge of your specific market
Generate specific execution plans	Provides analytical structure, not implementation
Poetry / literary creation	Style is extractable, literary genius is not
Historical evaluation	Skill focuses on methodology, not historical judgment
Guarantee outcomes	Analysis improves decisions, doesn't determine results

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Why This Framework for Technical/Startup Problems

Most business frameworks assume you have resources. This one was built for the opposite:

Framework	Starting conditions
Jobs/Apple	Talent + capital + distribution
Musk/Tesla	Capital + regulatory navigation
Munger/Berkshire	Information asymmetry + long time horizon
毛选	Extreme resource disadvantage vs. vastly stronger opponent

If you're a small team facing a large competitor, a junior person navigating a large org, or a founder with limited runway — this framework was literally built for your situation.

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Contributing

git clone https://github.com/leezythu/maoxuan-skill.git
cd maoxuan-skill

# Core skill file
vim SKILL.md

# Research references
vim references/research/01-core-writings.md

PRs welcome for: additional mental model documentation, new application patterns, corrections to framework distillation.

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License

MIT — use freely, modify freely, build on it freely.

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语录告诉你他说过什么。毛选.skill 帮你用他的方式看你的问题。

星星之火，可以燎原。