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Planning 🌱 Beginner

Research → Plan → Implement

A 3-stage approach that prevents you from jumping into execution before you understand the problem.

Best for Work tasks, home projects, learning goals
When to use Before starting any complex project
planningprojectsgetting-started

Use this pattern when you’re facing something unfamiliar or complex and you don’t want to jump straight into doing — you want to think it through first. AI is excellent at helping you map a problem before diving in.

The Recipe

I want to [describe your goal]. I'm not sure of the best approach yet, so let's do this in stages.

First, help me understand the landscape. What are the key things I should know before starting? What are the most common mistakes people make with this?

Then, based on that, suggest a concrete plan for my specific situation. I am [brief description of your context — experience level, resources, constraints].

Finally, give me the first 3 actionable steps I can take this week.

Example — Planning a vegetable garden

I want to start a vegetable garden in my backyard. I'm not sure of the best approach yet, so let's do this in stages.

First, help me understand the landscape. What are the key things I should know before starting? What are the most common mistakes beginners make?

Then, based on that, suggest a concrete plan for my situation. I have a 10x12 foot sunny patch, I'm a complete beginner, and I want to grow things my family will actually eat — mostly salads, tomatoes, and herbs.

Finally, give me the first 3 actionable steps I can take this week.

New to AI? Copy the example above, open claude.ai or chat.openai.com, paste it in the message box, and press Enter. Replace the garden details with your own goal.

Tips for better results

  • The more specific your context (your experience, constraints, resources), the more tailored the plan will be.
  • If you want to go deeper on the research phase, ask: “What are the top 3 resources you’d recommend for learning more about this?”
  • For work projects, add “I need to present this to [audience]” to get communication-ready output.

🔁 Leftover Remixes

🌶️ Spicy: After the 3-step plan, add: “Now identify the two assumptions in this plan most likely to be wrong — and tell me the cheapest way to test each one before I commit.”

🧊 Mild: Skip the research phase. Just ask: “What is the single most important first step I should take this week to make progress on [goal]?”

💰 Budget: “What free resources — communities, YouTube channels, or books — would you use to learn this without spending money?”

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