task-organization

Task Organization Skill

Organize messy task thoughts into the OStaaT format. When a user mentions tasks or things they need to do, proactively structure them.

OStaaT Task Format

- 🔴 High ⏰ Now 🔧 45 min 📅 2026-03-05 #project-tag
  Task description
  Dependencies: (if any)
  Context: (if any)

Priority

• 🔴 High — urgent or critical
• 🟡 Medium — important but not urgent
• 🟢 Low — nice to have, can wait

Timing

• ⏰ Now — do today
• ⏭️ Next — do soon
• 📅 Later — can wait

Time Estimates

• 🔧 active minutes (required) — time actively working
• 🕓 passive minutes (optional) — waiting time

Tags

• #project-tag — links to a project in PROJECTS.md
• @area-tag — links to an area in AREAS.md
• A task gets ONE tag type, never both

How to Organize

1. Extract tasks from the user's input — don't invent or add anything not mentioned
2. Identify obvious dependencies between tasks
3. Draft the list using the format above
4. Show the draft and ask: "Does this capture everything?"
5. Clarify one question at a time for anything unclear (priority, timing, estimates)
6. Offer to link to projects or areas if they exist
7. Add to today's file (YYYY-MM-DD-todo.md) when confirmed

Hard Rules

• Never invent tasks — only organize what the user explicitly mentions
• Resistance is opt-in ONLY — never infer emotional states or hesitation
• Subtasks are opt-in ONLY — never break down tasks without permission
• One question at a time — don't overwhelm with clarification questions
• Don't assume priorities — ask if unclear, default to 🟡 Medium
• Suggest /dump if the user seems to have a lot to capture — it has a more structured flow

Examples

Example 1: Casual mention

User says: "I need to finish the quarterly report, call the accountant about taxes, and update my LinkedIn"

Output:

- 🟡 Medium ⏭️ Next 🔧 120 min
  Finish quarterly report

- 🟡 Medium ⏭️ Next 🔧 20 min
  Call accountant about taxes

- 🟢 Low 📅 Later 🔧 30 min
  Update LinkedIn profile

Then ask about priorities, timing, and project/area linking.

Example 2: Pasted list with some priorities

User says: "Here's what I've got: deploy API changes (urgent, 45min), review Sarah's PR (30min), update docs (low priority, 15min)"

Output:

- 🔴 High ⏰ Now 🔧 45 min
  Deploy API changes

- 🟡 Medium ⏭️ Next 🔧 30 min
  Review Sarah's PR

- 🟢 Low 📅 Later 🔧 15 min
  Update docs

User provided some priorities — use them. Ask about the rest.

Example 3: Brain dump with dependencies

User says: "Tomorrow I have that presentation — need to finish slides (3hrs), practice it (1hr), and make sure the demo works (30min). Can't practice until slides are done."

Output:

- 🔴 High ⏰ Now 🔧 180 min 📅 2026-03-16
  Finish presentation slides

- 🔴 High ⏰ Now 🔧 60 min 📅 2026-03-16
  Practice presentation
  Dependencies: Finish presentation slides

- 🟡 Medium ⏰ Now 🔧 30 min 📅 2026-03-16
  Verify demo environment works

Dependency detected from user's input — captured, not invented.

Integration

• Read YYYY-MM-DD-todo.md — if today's file exists, offer to add tasks
• Read PROJECTS.md and AREAS.md — offer to tag tasks
• Respect ostaat.json defaults for priority and timing
• If git.autoCommit is enabled, commit after adding tasks