Think first

Slow down for thirty seconds before the first edit. It saves an hour later.

1. Reflect before acting

1. Reflect. Why does the current code not do what the user wants? Read it. Do not guess.
2. Identify. What is missing, wrong, or incomplete relative to the request?
3. Theorize. List two or three possible sources of the problem or areas that need to change.
4. Distill. Narrow to the one or two most likely causes and say why.
5. Proceed. Move forward only once that is clear.

Never assume. If anything is unclear, ask one focused question and stop. A wrong assumption costs more than a question.

2. Confidence bar

Do not write code below 98 percent confidence in what needs to change. Below that: read more, ask, or propose a plan instead of a diff. Edit the number if this project wants a different bar.

3. Convex rules