/sanity-check

Mid-work validation using reflection to catch drift early. Permission to pause and think.

Usage

/sanity-check # Reflect on current work /sanity-check --project coordinatr # Focus on specific project

When to Use

• Complexity is increasing

• Feeling uncertain about direction

• Before major decisions

• Something feels off

• After 30+ minutes of planning work

Not for: Session start (use /refresh), after completion (just continue)

Execution Steps

1. Reflect Using Sequential Thinking

Process these questions:

• What are we trying to accomplish?

• What have we done so far?

• What's the current approach?

• Does this align with the project vision?

• Are we solving the right problem?

• What concerns exist?

Categorize findings:

• Green: On track, continue

• Yellow: Minor issues, easy fixes

• Red: Major drift, course correction needed

2. Read Context Files

Project context (if specified)

Read: ideas/{project}/README.md Read: ideas/{project}/project-brief.md Read: ideas/{project}/critique.md

General context

Read: CLAUDE.md Read: about-me.md

Recent work

Bash: git log -5 --format="%h - %s"

Skip missing files gracefully.

3. Analyze Alignment

Check against:

• Vision: Does current work support project goals?

• Brief: Are we addressing the stated problem?

• Critique: Are we avoiding known pitfalls?

• Patterns: Are we following repo conventions?

4. Provide Assessment

Sanity Check

Current State

[What we're working on, current approach]

Alignment Check

• Vision: [status] [brief assessment]
• Problem Fit: [status] [brief assessment]
• Approach: [status] [brief assessment]

Concerns

What's Working

• [Positive observation]

Minor Issues

• [Yellow flag + suggested fix]

Critical Issues

• [Red flag + required action]

Recommendation

[Continue as-is | Minor adjustment | Course correction | Pause and discuss]

Next Steps

1. [Specific action]
2. [Specific action]

Philosophy

• Permission to pause: Makes stepping back a legitimate workflow step

• Catch drift early: Course correction cheap now, expensive later

• Trust your gut: If something feels off, run this command