natural-planning v1.0A

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---
name: natural-planning
category: workflow
environments: chat
description: Plans one multi-step project with GTD's Natural Planning Model (purpose, outcome, brainstorm, organize, next actions) when it feels stuck, vague, or overwhelming; does not triage inboxes or pick today's task.
metadata:
  version: "1.0"
---

# Natural Planning Model

Projects the brain plans well all go through the same five phases, whether or
not anyone names them. GTD formalizes the sequence so it can be applied
deliberately to projects that are stuck, vague, or new — to arrive at clear
outcomes and concrete next actions.

## When to use

- A single project feels stuck, vague, or overwhelming and needs deliberate
  planning before action.
- A to-do is not yet a concrete physical next action and belongs to a larger
  project that needs clarifying first.
- A stalled project needs its purpose or outcome restated before organizing
  or picking actions.

Not for:
- Triaging an inbox or processing loose inputs into a task manager.
- Picking what to work on today from existing next actions.

## The five phases

| # | Phase | Key question / output |
|---|-------|------------------------|
| 1 | **Purpose & principles** | "Why are we doing this at all?" — success criteria, decision rules. |
| 2 | **Envision the outcome** | "What does success look and feel like?" — a concrete completion picture. |
| 3 | **Brainstorm** | "What are all the possible moves?" — quantity first, no judging yet. |
| 4 | **Organize** | "What structure does this need?" — sections, sequences, priorities. |
| 5 | **Identify next actions** | "What is the very next physical thing to do?" — one per movable front. |

Each phase depends on the one before it: no purpose, no aim for brainstorming; no envisioned outcome, nothing to organize toward.

## How much planning is actually needed

**Plan only as much as it takes to get the project off your mind.**

| Tier | Share of projects | What's actually needed |
|------|---|---|
| Light | ~80% | Just a clear outcome (phase 2) plus a next action (phase 5). |
| Medium | ~15% | The above, plus some brainstorming — a sketch, informal notes. |
| Full | ~5% | All five phases, deliberately and in writing. |

## Workflow: walking a project through the model

1. **Assign the tier first** — Light, Medium, or Full. Everything below follows from that choice.
2. **Ask for the purpose — don't invent it.** Ask "Why are we doing this at all?", one question at a time, and wait for the answer.
3. **Ask for the outcome picture** — concrete, not aspirational — and wait for the answer.
4. **Brainstorm without editing.** Every possible step or angle; defer judgment and structure. The only step the agent may generate on its own.
5. **Organize the ideas** — group, sequence, prioritize into an outline, flowchart, or list.
6. **Decide the next action(s)** — one concrete physical next action per currently-movable front; fronts owned by someone else become Waiting For (who owes what). Stop when nothing is vague.

For Light-tier projects, steps 4–5 collapse: go straight from outcome (step 3) to next action (step 6).

## The physical-next-action rule

A next action names a physical, visible behavior. "Schedule a meeting" is an outcome, not an action; "Email Jane to propose three possible dates" is something a body can go and do right now.

Checklist for testing a candidate next action:
- [ ] Does it name a physical behavior (email, call, write, buy, walk to, open) rather than a result or an intention?
- [ ] Could someone else do exactly this, right now, without asking a clarifying question first?
- [ ] If not — make gathering the missing information the next action; that is usually what unblocks a stalled decision.

## Diagnosing a stuck planning session

**Move up — the project needs clarity** (arguing details with no agreed outcome; every idea a variation of one thing; each solution creating new problems). Back up to phases 1–2 before organizing or picking actions.

**Move down — the project is clear but motionless** (clear outcome, no physical next action; planning circling purpose instead of producing something doable). Move to phases 3–5 and name the next physical action.

**Reactive planning is the failure pattern:** scheduling and listing actions from the bottom before purpose and outcome exist produces motion without direction; stop and move back up to phase 1.

## Worked example

In: "our onboarding is bad" — vague, no owner, no definition of fixed.

- Tier: Medium — needs a sketch, not all five phases in writing.
- Purpose: new hires ship a first change in week one without hand-holding.
- Outcome: a checklist a new hire follows alone, verified by one pilot hire.
- Brainstorm: buddy system, docs sprint, sample task repo, video walkthrough, FAQ from recent hires.
- Organize: pilot first (checklist + one volunteer), then harden what worked.
- Next actions: email Priya to volunteer as pilot; ask recent hire Tomas for his top three confusions (Waiting For: Tomas).

## Output

When applying this skill to a project, produce:
1. The purpose (why) and the envisioned outcome, stated concretely.
2. Where the project falls on the 80/15/5 tier, and therefore how much of phases 3–4 are actually warranted.
3. A brainstorm list if the tier calls for one.
4. An organized structure if the tier calls for one.
5. A list of concrete physical next actions — checked against the physical-next-action rule above, one per currently-movable front of the project.
6. A Waiting-For list for fronts whose next move belongs to someone else — who owes what — kept separate from your own next actions.

If the process stalls, run the stuck-session diagnostic above — move up for clarity, move down for motion.