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Plans Methodology

Structured work tracking methodology using Plans.

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Version
1.0.0

Overview

Structured work tracking methodology using Plans.

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Plans Methodology

Structured work tracking for individuals or multi-agent teams. Each agent maintains plans/ in their workspace.

Directory Structure

text
plans/
  README.md
  draft/          # Being defined, not yet approved
  approved/       # Ready for execution
  in_progress/    # Currently executing
  completed/      # Done
  archived/       # Historical reference

Each plan is a folder: YYYY-MM-DD-plan-name/

Plan Contents

text
YYYY-MM-DD-plan-name/
  specs/              # Problem statements, requirements
  proposal.md         # Why: justification, impact, risks
  design.md           # How: architecture, flows, decisions
  tasks.md            # What: checkboxes, owners, phases

proposal.md

markdown
# Proposal: [Plan Name]

## Status
Draft | Submitted | Approved | Rejected

## Parent Plan
[agent]/plans/[state]/[plan-name] (if child plan)

## Problem
What problem are we solving?

## Proposed Solution
High-level approach.

## Impact
What changes? What improves?

## Cost / Effort
Time, resources, dependencies.

## Risks
What could go wrong?

## Decision
Approved by [name] on [date] | Rejected because [reason]

design.md

markdown
# Design: [Plan Name]

## Overview
What are we building/doing?

## Architecture / Approach
How does it work? Diagrams, flows, decisions.

## Dependencies
What do we need? Other plans, external services, other agents.

## Constraints
Limitations, rules, non-negotiables.

## Open Questions
Things still to be decided.

tasks.md

markdown
# Tasks: [Plan Name]

## Summary
Brief overview.

## Tasks

### Phase 1: [Name]
- [x] Task description -> Owner
  Completed YYYY-MM-DD. Notes.
- [ ] Task description -> Owner
  Details, acceptance criteria.
- [ ] Delegate to [Agent]: [what] -> [Agent]
  Child plan: [agent]/plans/[state]/[plan-name]

Lifecycle

  • Draft - Specs written, proposal drafted
  • Approved - Proposal approved, design and tasks written
  • In Progress - Execution started
  • Completed - All tasks done
  • Archived - Kept for reference
Move the plan folder between state directories to change state.

When to Create a Plan

Create when: multi-agent coordination needed, significant effort, multiple phases, needs approval, or progress tracking desired.

Skip for: quick tasks, simple lookups, routine operations.

Approval Authority

Define your own hierarchy. Typical pattern:

  • Owner/CEO approves strategic plans
  • Lead agent can approve plans aligned with established vision
  • Sub-agents submit proposals to their lead for approval
Document your approval chain in your workspace's plans/README.md.

Delegation

When delegating work to another agent:

  • Parent plan's tasks.md references the child plan path
  • Child plan's proposal.md references the parent plan path
Example in parent tasks.md:
markdown
- [ ] Delegate to [Agent]: implement feature X
  Child plan: [agent]/plans/in_progress/2026-02-20-feature-x

Example in child proposal.md:

markdown
## Parent Plan
[lead-agent]/plans/in_progress/2026-02-20-parent-plan

On Session Start

  • Check plans/in_progress/ for active plans
  • Check plans/draft/ for plans awaiting action
  • Continue where you left off

Granularity Tips

  • Not everything needs a plan. Use for significant, multi-step work.
  • A single agent working on a quick fix does not need a plan.
  • Plans shine when coordination, tracking, or approval is involved.
  • Keep plan documents concise. Verbose plans get ignored.

Installation

Terminal bash

openclaw install plans-methodology
    
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💻Code Examples

archived/ # Historical reference

-archived--historical-reference.txt
Each plan is a folder: `YYYY-MM-DD-plan-name/`

## Plan Contents

Child plan: [agent]/plans/[state]/[plan-name]

-child-plan-agentplansstateplan-name.txt
## Lifecycle

1. **Draft** - Specs written, proposal drafted
2. **Approved** - Proposal approved, design and tasks written
3. **In Progress** - Execution started
4. **Completed** - All tasks done
5. **Archived** - Kept for reference

Move the plan folder between state directories to change state.

## When to Create a Plan

Create when: multi-agent coordination needed, significant effort, multiple phases, needs approval, or progress tracking desired.

Skip for: quick tasks, simple lookups, routine operations.

## Approval Authority

Define your own hierarchy. Typical pattern:

- **Owner/CEO** approves strategic plans
- **Lead agent** can approve plans aligned with established vision
- **Sub-agents** submit proposals to their lead for approval

Document your approval chain in your workspace's `plans/README.md`.

## Delegation

When delegating work to another agent:

1. Parent plan's `tasks.md` references the child plan path
2. Child plan's `proposal.md` references the parent plan path

Example in parent `tasks.md`:
example.txt
plans/
  README.md
  draft/          # Being defined, not yet approved
  approved/       # Ready for execution
  in_progress/    # Currently executing
  completed/      # Done
  archived/       # Historical reference
example.txt
YYYY-MM-DD-plan-name/
  specs/              # Problem statements, requirements
  proposal.md         # Why: justification, impact, risks
  design.md           # How: architecture, flows, decisions
  tasks.md            # What: checkboxes, owners, phases
example.md
# Proposal: [Plan Name]

## Status
Draft | Submitted | Approved | Rejected

## Parent Plan
[agent]/plans/[state]/[plan-name] (if child plan)

## Problem
What problem are we solving?

## Proposed Solution
High-level approach.

## Impact
What changes? What improves?

## Cost / Effort
Time, resources, dependencies.

## Risks
What could go wrong?

## Decision
Approved by [name] on [date] | Rejected because [reason]
example.md
# Design: [Plan Name]

## Overview
What are we building/doing?

## Architecture / Approach
How does it work? Diagrams, flows, decisions.

## Dependencies
What do we need? Other plans, external services, other agents.

## Constraints
Limitations, rules, non-negotiables.

## Open Questions
Things still to be decided.
example.md
# Tasks: [Plan Name]

## Summary
Brief overview.

## Tasks

### Phase 1: [Name]
- [x] Task description -> Owner
  Completed YYYY-MM-DD. Notes.
- [ ] Task description -> Owner
  Details, acceptance criteria.
- [ ] Delegate to [Agent]: [what] -> [Agent]
  Child plan: [agent]/plans/[state]/[plan-name]

Tags

#productivity_and-tasks

Quick Info

Category Development
Model Claude 3.5
Complexity One-Click
Author cramtek
Last Updated 3/10/2026
🚀
Optimized for
Claude 3.5
🧠

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openclaw install plans-methodology