Sequence Work into Verifiable Units

Order work as a sequence of small units, each ending in a state you can check, and don't advance until the current one is green.

Why: A break caught at the unit that caused it is cheap to localize. A break caught after a batch is buried, and you have already built further on a broken base. Sequencing those same units into a delivery a reviewer can replay turns "trust me" into "watch it go red, then green."

Execution. In a sweep, migration, or any run of similar edits, verify each change before starting the next. Each unit is a before/after bracket: known-good state, one change, run the check, then proceed. Start from a known clean baseline so every check measures the intended change. When a lever does the edits, the per-unit check is nearly free. Run it anyway.

Delivery. Order checkpoints so they prove the work. The canonical shape is a failing test first, then the fix. Other useful orders are a subtraction before the reshape, a baseline capture before the treatment, or the scaffold before the feature. Each checkpoint stands on its own and the sequence reads as an argument.

If $principle-prove-it-works is available, apply it to keep each check tied to the real artifact; otherwise exercise and inspect the actual output directly. If $principle-build-the-lever is available, apply it to make each unit cheap to repeat; otherwise use the smallest rerunnable check that proves the unit.

Git authority: This skill does not authorize Git mutations. Inspect Git as needed. Create a branch or worktree only when the user or repository workflow calls for it. Create a commit only when the user or invoking workflow explicitly authorizes committing. If $commit-guidelines is available, apply it; otherwise inspect the exact commit diff, preserve unrelated work, run repository checks, use the repository's commit-message convention, and never add AI attribution. Rebase, amend, squash, reset, force operations, push, pull-request changes, merge, deploy, issue changes, and review-thread actions each require separate explicit authorization.