para

<essential_principles>

PARA: Organize by Actionability, Not Topic

PARA organizes information by when you'll need it:

Example: A Kubernetes article goes in Projects if deploying now, Areas if maintaining systems, Resources if just learning.

Folder Structure

1_Projects/           # Active work with deadlines
├── _INDEX.md         # Project overview
└── [Project-Name]/   # One folder per project (synced with GTD)

2_Areas/              # Ongoing responsibilities
├── _INDEX.md         # Area overview
└── [area-name].md    # One file per area (or folder if complex)

3_Resources/          # Reference material
├── _INDEX.md         # Resource overview
└── [topic]/          # Topic-based resources

4_Archive/            # Inactive items
├── _INDEX.md         # Archive overview
└── [archived items]  # Completed/inactive content

GTD Sync

PARA projects (1_Projects/ folders) stay in sync with GTD projects (GitHub milestones):

• •Same names: 1_Projects/API-Redesign/ ↔ GTD milestone "API-Redesign"
• •Sync command: para sync shows mismatches and offers to fix them
• •One source of truth: GTD manages project lifecycle, PARA holds the notes

</essential_principles>

<initialization_check>

IMPORTANT: Before showing the intake menu, run this check:

./.claude/skills/para/scripts/para status 2>/dev/null

If it exits non-zero or shows "Error: PARA root not configured", the user needs to initialize PARA first.

Do NOT proceed to intake. Instead:

1. •

   Use AskUserQuestion to ask: "Where would you like to store your PARA files?"

   • •Offer sensible options like ~/Notes, ~/Documents/PARA, or let them specify a custom path
   • •Ask if this should be the default for all projects or just this repo
2. •

   After getting the path, run:

   bash

   # Initialize PARA structure
   ./.claude/skills/para/scripts/para init --path <user-specified-path>
   
   # Then save config (choose one):
   # For this repo only:
   ./.claude/skills/para/scripts/para config --set-repo . <user-specified-path>
   # Or as global default:
   ./.claude/skills/para/scripts/para config --set-root <user-specified-path>
   

3. •

   Then proceed to the intake menu.

</initialization_check>

1. •Categorize - Help deciding where something belongs
2. •Sync - Check/sync PARA projects with GTD milestones
3. •Review - Audit PARA structure for stale items
4. •Create - Set up new project/area/resource folder
5. •Archive - Move completed items to archive

Wait for response before proceeding. </intake>

After reading the workflow, follow it exactly. </routing>

<quick_reference>

CLI Commands

PARA="./.claude/skills/para/scripts/para"

# Show PARA structure status
$PARA status

# Show/manage configuration
$PARA config

# Configuration options:
$PARA config --set-root ~/Notes           # Set global default
$PARA config --set-repo . ~/Notes/work    # Map current repo → PARA location
$PARA config --unset-repo .               # Remove repo mapping

# Sync with GTD (shows mismatches)
$PARA sync

# Sync and fix mismatches
$PARA sync --fix

# Create new project (also creates GTD milestone)
$PARA project create "Project-Name"

# Archive a project
$PARA project archive "Project-Name"

# List projects (with GTD sync status)
$PARA project list

Configuration Resolution

PARA root is resolved in order:

1. •.para.toml in current git repo root (local override)
2. •[repos] mapping in ~/.config/para/config.toml (per-repo)
3. •para_root in global config (default)
4. •Auto-discovery (walk up from cwd looking for PARA folders)

Decision Tree

Is this actively being worked on with a deadline?
├── YES → 1_Projects/
└── NO ↓

Is this an ongoing responsibility I maintain?
├── YES → 2_Areas/
└── NO ↓

Is this something I might reference later?
├── YES → 3_Resources/
└── NO ↓

Is this completed/inactive but worth keeping?
├── YES → 4_Archive/
└── NO → Delete it

</quick_reference>

<reference_index>

Domain Knowledge

All in references/:

• •para-method.md - Full PARA methodology with examples

</reference_index>

<workflows_index>

Workflows

All in workflows/:

</workflows_index>