First Principles Decomposer
When To Use
- •Designing new products or features
- •Feeling stuck on a complex problem
- •Existing solutions seem overcomplicated
- •Need to challenge assumptions
- •Starting any new project or initiative
The Process
Phase 1: Identify Assumptions
Ask: "What am I assuming to be true that might not be?" List every assumption embedded in the current approach.
Phase 2: Break to Atoms
For each assumption, ask: "What is the most fundamental truth here?" Keep asking "why?" until you hit bedrock facts.
Phase 3: Rebuild From Truth
Starting ONLY from verified fundamentals, ask: "What's the simplest solution that addresses the core need?"
Interactive Flow
When user invokes this skill:
- •Clarify the problem (1-2 questions max)
- •Surface assumptions - list what's being taken for granted
- •Decompose to fundamentals - show the atomic truths
- •Rebuild solution - construct from ground up
- •Compare - show how this differs from conventional approach
Output Format
PROBLEM: [stated problem] ASSUMPTIONS IDENTIFIED: 1. [assumption] → Challenge: [why this might be wrong] 2. [assumption] → Challenge: [why this might be wrong] FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS: • [bedrock fact 1] • [bedrock fact 2] • [bedrock fact 3] REBUILT SOLUTION: [New approach built only from fundamentals] VS CONVENTIONAL: [How this differs from the obvious approach]
Example Triggers
- •"Break down our parent communication problem from first principles"
- •"I want to rethink how we do [X] from the ground up"
- •"What are we assuming about [problem] that might be wrong?"
Integration
This skill compounds with:
- •inversion-strategist - After rebuilding from fundamentals, invert to find what would guarantee failure of the new approach
- •second-order-consequences - Project downstream effects of implementing the rebuilt solution
- •pre-mortem-analyst - Stress-test the rebuilt solution by imagining its failure
- •six-thinking-hats - Apply all six perspectives to validate each fundamental truth identified
Skill Metadata
Created: 2026-01-06 Last Updated: 2026-01-06 Author: Artem Version: 1.0
See references/framework.md for detailed methodology See references/examples.md for Artem-specific examples See references/integrated-frameworks.md for Stanford Design Thinking + MIT Systems Engineering combo