Goals

Build a personal goal-setting system with milestones, tracking, and regular reviews.

Security Scan

Instructions, requirements, and behavior are internally consistent with a personal goal-tracking skill; it is instruction-only and requests no credentials or installs, but it will create and read/write files in your home directory and may surface reminders.

Purpose & Capability

The name/description (personal goal-setting, milestones, reviews) match the SKILL.md: it specifies file-based goals, folder layout, review cadence, and tracking behavior. No unrelated binaries, env vars, or installs are requested.

Instruction Scope

The instructions explicitly direct creation/use of ~/goals/ and one-file-per-goal under that workspace; this is coherent for goal tracking. Note: the SKILL.md implies ongoing surfacing of progress ('surface when relevant') — which gives the agent discretion to notify or read these files. There are no instructions to access unrelated system paths or external endpoints.

Install Mechanism

No install spec and no code files — instruction-only skill. This minimizes disk-write/install risk.

Credentials

No environment variables, credentials, or config paths are requested. The data model (local files in ~/goals/) is proportional to the stated purpose.

Persistence & Privilege

always: false (normal). The skill implies periodic monitoring/reminders but does not request persistent system-wide privileges. Be aware autonomous invocation is enabled by default for skills (allowing the agent to act without explicit single-step prompts) — combined with file reads/writes this could lead to ongoing notifications unless you control invocation settings.

Assessment

This skill is coherent and appears safe from a permissions/credential perspective, but consider the following before installing: (1) it will create and read/write a ~/goals/ workspace in your home directory — if you keep sensitive information in home folders, review or move it first; (2) the instructions allow the agent discretion to “surface” progress/reminders — disable autonomous invocation or limit the agent's notification permissions if you don't want ongoing monitoring; (3) there are no declared integrations (calendar/journal), but if you later grant calendar or cloud access to enable integrations, those are separate permissions to evaluate; (4) back up or encrypt any goal files you consider sensitive. If you want stricter limits, request the skill be modified to require explicit user prompts before creating files or sending reminders.

Core Behavior

• User mentions an aspiration → help clarify and structure as goal
• Track progress without nagging → surface when relevant
• Regular reviews → quarterly and yearly reflection
• Create ~/goals/ as workspace

Goal vs Project vs Habit

• Goal: outcome you want (run a marathon, save €10k, learn Spanish)
• Project: defined end state, series of tasks (plan the wedding)
• Habit: recurring behavior (exercise 4x/week)
• Goals often spawn projects and habits to achieve them

When User States a Goal

• "What does success look like specifically?"
• "By when?" — deadline creates urgency
• "Why does this matter to you?" — motivation for hard days
• "What's the first small step?"

Goal File Structure

One file per goal: run-a-marathon.md

• What: specific outcome
• Why: motivation and meaning
• By when: target date
• Milestones: checkpoints along the way
• Current status: on track, behind, ahead
• Progress log: dated updates

Milestone Design

Break big goals into checkable milestones:

• Marathon: 5k → 10k → half marathon → full
• Save €10k: €2.5k per quarter
• Learn Spanish: A1 → A2 → B1
• Each milestone is a mini-celebration

Folder Structure

~/goals/
├── active/
│   ├── run-marathon-2024.md
│   └── save-10k.md
├── achieved/
├── abandoned/
└── someday.md

Progress Tracking

• Log updates when progress happens
• Quantify when possible: "Week 8: ran 15km"
• Note blockers and breakthroughs
• Keep log brief — not a journal

Review Cadence

• Weekly: glance at active goals, any action needed?
• Monthly: real progress check, adjust if needed
• Quarterly: deep review, add/remove goals
• Yearly: major reflection, set next year's goals

Quarterly Review Prompts

• Which goals progressed? Which stalled?
• Any goals no longer matter? → abandon or pause
• New goals to add?
• Are milestones still realistic?
• What's blocking the stuck ones?

Yearly Review

• What did you achieve this year?
• What did you learn from abandoned goals?
• What themes emerge?
• What do you want next year to be about?
• 3-5 goals maximum for the year

Goal Limits

• Maximum 3-5 active goals — more means diluted focus
• One "big" goal at a time — marathon training doesn't mix with startup launch
• Someday list for future goals — parking lot, not commitment
• Quarterly rotation — finish or abandon before adding

When Goals Stall

• No progress in 30+ days → surface in review
• Ask: still important? → if no, abandon guilt-free
• Ask: what's blocking? → solve or accept
• Ask: break down smaller? → maybe milestone too big

Abandoning Goals

• Not failure — priorities change, that's life
• Move to abandoned with note: why stopped
• Extract lessons: what would you do differently?
• Make room for goals that matter now

What NOT To Suggest

• SMART goals framework obsessively — clarity matters, acronyms don't
• Too many goals — focus beats quantity
• Guilt about abandoned goals — they served their purpose
• Complex tracking systems — simple file is enough

Motivation Maintenance

• Revisit "why" when motivation dips
• Celebrate milestones — don't just move to next
• Share with accountability partner if helpful
• Visualize completion — what does life look like after?

Goal Categories (Optional)

• Health & fitness
• Career & work
• Financial
• Relationships
• Learning & growth
• Creative
• Don't force categories — use if helpful

Integration Points

• Projects: goals spawn projects
• Habits: goals require habits
• Journal: reflect on goal progress
• Calendar: milestone deadlines

Someday Goals

• Ideas not ready for commitment
• Review quarterly — promote or keep parking
• No shame in long someday list
• "Would be nice but not now" is valid