Metadata

Field	Value
Skill Name	Task Planner
Invoked As	`/task-planner [filename or topic]`
Category	Planning / Reasoning
Requires Approval	Conditional (see Step 5)
Output Location	`vault/Needs_Action/Plan_<timestamp>.md`
Related Scripts	`inbox_planner.py`, `workflow_runner.py`

Description

The Task Planner skill reads an incoming task from vault/Inbox/, applies a structured reasoning loop to fully understand its intent and scope, then produces a detailed execution plan saved to vault/Needs_Action/.

It does not execute the task. Its sole responsibility is to think clearly, plan precisely, and surface any decisions that require human judgment before action is taken.

When to Use

A new task file appears in vault/Inbox/
A user drops a request that needs to be broken into clear steps
Any task that involves external communication, financial decisions, or multi-step execution
When the scope or priority of a task is unclear and needs to be resolved before acting

Workflow

Step 1 — Read the Task

Open the task file from vault/Inbox/
Extract the title (from # H1, frontmatter title: field, or filename)
Read the full body content
Note any metadata: sender, date, amounts, deadlines, or named parties

Step 2 — Analyze Intent

Ask and answer the following internally:

What does this task require? (reply, research, payment, outreach, content, other)
Who is involved? (client, vendor, internal team, external party)
What is the deadline or urgency signal?
What happens if this is delayed or ignored?
Are there any financial, legal, or reputational implications?

Step 3 — Break Into Steps

Decompose the task into 3-6 concrete, actionable steps.

Rules:

Each step must describe a single action
Steps must be sequenced logically (no circular dependencies)
Do not include steps that execute the task — plan and prepare only
Use imperative language: "Draft...", "Identify...", "Confirm...", "Notify..."

Step 4 — Assign Priority

Select one of the following based on urgency and impact:

Priority	Criteria
High	Client-facing, financial, time-sensitive, or reputational impact
Medium	Important but not urgent; can be completed within 24 hours
Low	Informational, low-stakes, or can be deferred without consequence

Escalate to High automatically if:

Message involves a payment >= PKR 10,000
A client deadline is mentioned
The word "urgent", "ASAP", or "overdue" appears in the task

Step 5 — Check If Human Approval Is Needed

Set Requires Human Approval: Yes if any of the following are true:

The task involves sending a message to a client or external party
A financial transaction or invoice is referenced
The task modifies shared resources (files, databases, schedules)
The task involves committing to a deadline or deliverable on behalf of the business
The intent of the task is ambiguous or contradictory

Set Requires Human Approval: No only when:

The task is purely internal and informational
No external communication or financial action is involved
The outcome is fully reversible

Step 6 — Save Plan to Needs_Action

Write the plan file to vault/Needs_Action/Plan_<timestamp>.md using the format below.

The file must be written. Do not display the plan inline as a substitute for saving it.

After saving, output a confirmation:

Plan created: Needs_Action/Plan_<timestamp>.md
Priority: [High / Medium / Low]
Requires Approval: [Yes / No]

Output Format

---
type: plan
source_file: <original inbox filename>
created: <YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS>
priority: <High | Medium | Low>
requires_approval: <Yes | No>
status: active
---

# Task Plan

*Generated by Task Planner skill on <date>*
*Source: `Inbox/<filename>`*

---

## Original Task

<full content of the inbox task, unmodified>

---

## Objective

<one sentence — the core goal this plan achieves>

---

## Step-by-Step Plan

- [ ] <Step 1>
- [ ] <Step 2>
- [ ] <Step 3>
- [ ] <Step 4>
- [ ] <Step 5>

---

## Priority

**<High | Medium | Low>**

---

## Requires Human Approval?

**<Yes | No>**

<If Yes, briefly explain what requires approval and why.>

---

## Suggested Output

<Describe what the completed task should produce — a sent message, a document,
a confirmed payment, a scheduled meeting, etc.>

---

> **Note:** This is a plan only. No action has been taken.
> Review each step, obtain approval where required, then execute.

Rules and Constraints

Never fabricate names, amounts, dates, or invoice numbers not present in the task
Never mark Requires Human Approval: No for any task involving external communication
Never execute any step — the plan is the only output of this skill
If the task is ambiguous, default to Priority: High and Requires Approval: Yes
All plan files must be saved to vault/Needs_Action/ — not displayed only

Error Handling

Condition	Action
Inbox file not found	Report the missing file and list what is currently in Inbox/
Task body is empty	Create a minimal plan noting that content is missing
Task intent is completely unclear	Flag as `Priority: High`, `Requires Approval: Yes`, note ambiguity in Objective
API unavailable	Use default 5-step plan structure, flag as manually reviewed

Example Invocation

/task-planner follow_up_ali_khan.md

Reads vault/Inbox/follow_up_ali_khan.md, reasons through it, and saves:

vault/Needs_Action/Plan_20260307_093045.md

Output:

Plan created: Needs_Action/Plan_20260307_093045.md
Priority: High
Requires Approval: Yes

Skill: Task Planner