danielmiessler

Telos

@danielmiessler/Telos
danielmiessler
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813 forks
Updated 1/18/2026
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Life OS and project analysis. USE WHEN TELOS, life goals, projects, dependencies, books, movies. SkillSearch('telos') for docs.

Installation

$skills install @danielmiessler/Telos
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Details

PathPacks/pai-telos-skill/src/SKILL.md
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Scoped Name@danielmiessler/Telos

Usage

After installing, this skill will be available to your AI coding assistant.

Verify installation:

skills list

Skill Instructions


name: Telos description: Life OS and project analysis. USE WHEN TELOS, life goals, projects, dependencies, books, movies. SkillSearch('telos') for docs.

Telos

TELOS (Telic Evolution and Life Operating System) is a comprehensive context-gathering system with two applications:

  1. Personal TELOS - {principal.name}'s life context system (beliefs, goals, lessons, wisdom) at ~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/
  2. Project TELOS - Analysis framework for organizations/projects (relationships, dependencies, goals, progress)

Voice Notification

When executing a workflow, do BOTH:

  1. Send voice notification:

    curl -s -X POST http://localhost:8888/notify \
      -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
      -d '{"message": "Running the WORKFLOWNAME workflow from the Telos skill"}' \
      > /dev/null 2>&1 &
    
  2. Output text notification:

    Running the **WorkflowName** workflow from the **Telos** skill...
    

Full documentation: ~/.claude/skills/CORE/SkillNotifications.md

Workflow Routing

When executing a workflow, output this notification directly:

Running the **WorkflowName** workflow from the **Telos** skill...
WorkflowTriggerFile
Update"add to TELOS", "update my goals", "add book to TELOS"Workflows/Update.md
InterviewExtraction"extract content", "extract interviews", "analyze interviews"Workflows/InterviewExtraction.md
CreateNarrativePoints"create narrative", "narrative points", "TELOS report", "n=24"Workflows/CreateNarrativePoints.md
WriteReport"write report", "McKinsey report", "create TELOS report", "professional report"Workflows/WriteReport.md

Note: For general project analysis, dashboards, dependency mapping, and executive summaries, the skill handles these directly without a separate workflow file.

Examples

Example 1: Update personal TELOS

User: "add Project Hail Mary to my TELOS books"
--> Invokes Update workflow
--> Creates timestamped backup of BOOKS.md
--> Adds book entry with formatted metadata
--> Logs change in updates.md with timestamp

Example 2: Analyze project with TELOS

User: "analyze ~/Projects/MyApp with TELOS"
--> Scans all .md and .csv files in directory
--> Extracts entities, relationships, dependencies
--> Returns analysis with dependency chains and progress metrics

Example 3: Build project dashboard

User: "build a dashboard for TELOSAPP"
--> Launches up to 10 parallel engineers
--> Creates Next.js dashboard with shadcn/ui + Aceternity
--> Returns interactive dashboard with dependency graphs, metrics cards, progress tables

Example 4: Generate narrative points

User: "create TELOS narrative for Acme Corp, n=24"
--> Invokes CreateNarrativePoints workflow
--> Analyzes TELOS context (situation, problems, recommendations)
--> Returns 24 crisp bullet points (8-12 words each)
--> Output is slide-ready for presentations or customer briefings

Example 5: Generate McKinsey-style report

User: "write a TELOS report for Acme Corp"
--> Invokes WriteReport workflow
--> First runs CreateNarrativePoints to generate story content
--> Maps narrative to McKinsey report structure
--> Generates web-based report with professional styling
--> Output at {project_dir}/report - run `bun dev` to view
--> White background, subtle Tokyo Night Storm accents
--> Includes: cover page, executive summary, findings, recommendations, roadmap

Context Detection

How {daidentity.name} determines which TELOS context:

User RequestContextLocation
"my TELOS", "my goals", "my beliefs", "add to TELOS"Personal TELOS~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/
"Alma", "TELOSAPP", "analyze [project]", "dashboard for"Project TELOSUser-specified directory
"analyze ~/path/to/project"Project TELOSSpecified path

Part 1: Personal TELOS ({principal.name}'s Life)

Location

CRITICAL PATH: All personal TELOS files are located at:

~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/

Personal TELOS lives in the CORE USER directory, NOT directly under the Telos skill directory.

Personal TELOS Framework

All files located in ~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/:

Core Philosophy

  • TELOS.md - Main framework document
  • MISSION.md - Life mission statement
  • BELIEFS.md - Core beliefs and world model
  • WISDOM.md - Accumulated wisdom

Life Data

  • BOOKS.md - Favorite books
  • MOVIES.md - Favorite movies
  • LEARNED.md - Lessons learned over time
  • WRONG.md - Things {principal.name} was wrong about (growth tracking)

Mental Models

  • FRAMES.md - Mental frames and perspectives
  • MODELS.md - Mental models used for decision-making
  • NARRATIVES.md - Personal narratives and self-stories
  • STRATEGIES.md - Strategies being employed in life

Goals & Challenges

  • GOALS.md - Life goals (short-term and long-term)
  • PROJECTS.md - Active projects
  • PROBLEMS.md - Problems to solve
  • CHALLENGES.md - Current challenges being faced
  • PREDICTIONS.md - Predictions about the future
  • TRAUMAS.md - Past traumas (for context and healing)

Change Tracking

  • updates.md - Comprehensive changelog of all TELOS updates

Working with Personal TELOS

Read Files

# View specific file
read ~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/GOALS.md
read ~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/BELIEFS.md

# View recent updates
read ~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/updates.md

Update Personal TELOS

CRITICAL: Never manually edit. Use the Update workflow.

Workflow: Workflows/Update.md

The workflow provides:

  • Automatic timestamped backups
  • Change logging in updates.md
  • Version history preservation
  • Proper formatting and structure

Valid files for updates: BELIEFS.md, BOOKS.md, CHALLENGES.md, FRAMES.md, GOALS.md, LEARNED.md, MISSION.md, MODELS.md, MOVIES.md, NARRATIVES.md, PREDICTIONS.md, PROBLEMS.md, PROJECTS.md, STRATEGIES.md, TELOS.md, TRAUMAS.md, WISDOM.md, WRONG.md


Part 2: Project TELOS (Organizational Analysis)

Capabilities

For any project directory, TELOS provides:

  1. Relationship Discovery - Find how files/entities connect
  2. Dependency Mapping - Identify what depends on what
  3. Goal Extraction - Discover stated and implied objectives
  4. Progress Analysis - Track advancement and metrics
  5. Narrative Generation - Create executive summaries
  6. Visual Dashboards - Build beautiful UIs with data

Target Directory Detection

Flexible file discovery - no required structure:

# User specifies directory
"Analyze ~/Cloud/Projects/TELOSAPP"
--> {daidentity.name} scans for .md and .csv files anywhere in tree

# {daidentity.name} automatically finds all .md and .csv files regardless of structure

Analysis Workflow

Step 1: Identify Target

Auto-detection:

  • User mentions project name (TELOSAPP, Alma, etc.)
  • User provides path explicitly
  • {daidentity.name} looks for common project locations

Step 2: Scan Files

Discover all markdown and CSV files:

find $TARGET_DIR -type f \( -name "*.md" -o -name "*.csv" \)

Index:

  • Markdown structure (headings, sections, links)
  • CSV schema (columns, data types)
  • Cross-references and mentions
  • Entities (people, teams, projects, problems)

Step 3: Relationship Analysis

Build relationship graph:

  1. Entity Extraction - Identify unique entities
  2. Connection Discovery - Find explicit/implicit links
  3. Dependency Mapping - Trace dependencies
  4. Network Construction - Build directed graph

Step 4: Generate Insights

Produce analytics:

  • Dependency Chains: PROBLEMS --> GOALS --> STRATEGIES --> PROJECTS
  • Bottlenecks: What blocks progress?
  • Goal Alignment: Projects aligned with objectives?
  • Progress Metrics: Completion percentages
  • Risk Areas: Overdue items, blocked work

Step 5: Create Outputs

Output Formats:

  1. Markdown Report - Static analysis with Mermaid diagrams
  2. Web Dashboard - Interactive app with shadcn/ui + Aceternity
  3. JSON Export - Structured data
  4. Executive Summary - Narrative overview
  5. Custom Format - As requested

Building Dashboards

Parallel Engineer Strategy

CRITICAL: When building UIs, use up to 16 parallel engineers.

Launch Strategy: Use single message with 10 Task calls in parallel:

Engineer 1: Project structure + layout + navigation
Engineer 2: Overview page with metrics cards
Engineer 3: Projects page with progress tracking
Engineer 4: Teams page with performance tables
Engineer 5: Vulnerabilities/issues page
Engineer 6: Progress timeline visualization
Engineer 7: Data parsing library (MD/CSV)
Engineer 8: Shared components (cards, badges, tables)
Engineer 9: Design polish and theme
Engineer 10: Integration and testing

Dashboard Requirements

Tech Stack:

  • Next.js 14 + TypeScript
  • shadcn/ui for UI components
  • Aceternity UI for layouts
  • Tailwind CSS
  • Tokyo Night Day theme (professional light)

Features:

  • Dependency graphs (Mermaid or D3.js)
  • Progress tables (sortable, filterable)
  • Metrics cards (KPIs, stats)
  • Timeline visualizations
  • Relationship networks

Design:

--background: #ffffff
--foreground: #1a1b26
--primary: #2e7de9
--accent: #9854f1
--destructive: #f52a65
--success: #33b579
--warning: #f0a020

Common TELOS Files

Standard Project TELOS Structure (auto-detected):

Context Files

  • OVERVIEW.md - Project overview
  • COMPANY.md - Organization context
  • PROBLEMS.md - Issues to solve
  • GOALS.md - Objectives
  • MISSION.md - Mission statement
  • STRATEGIES.md - Strategic approaches
  • PROJECTS.md - Active initiatives

Operational Files

  • EMPLOYEES.md - Team members
  • ENGINEERING_TEAMS.md - Team structure
  • BUDGET.md - Financial tracking
  • KPI_TRACKING.md - Metrics
  • APPLICATIONS.md - App inventory
  • TOOLS.md - Tooling
  • VENDORS.md - Third parties

Security Files

  • VULNERABILITIES.md - Security issues
  • SECURITY_POSTURE.md - Security state
  • THREAT_MODEL.md - Threats

Data Files (CSV)

  • data/VULNERABILITIES.csv - Vuln tracking
  • data/INCIDENTS.csv - Incident log
  • data/VENDORS.csv - Vendor data

Note: Files are optional. TELOS adapts to whatever exists.

Visualization Types

Available Visualizations:

  • Dependency Graphs - Mermaid or D3.js network
  • Progress Tables - shadcn/ui tables with filters
  • Metrics Cards - Aceternity card layouts
  • Timeline Charts - Progress over time
  • Status Dashboards - KPI overviews
  • Relationship Networks - Force-directed graphs
  • Bar Charts - Recharts for comparisons
  • Line Charts - Trend analysis

Security & Privacy

Personal TELOS:

  • NEVER commit to public repos
  • NEVER share publicly
  • Always backup before changes
  • Use Update workflow only

Project TELOS:

  • May contain sensitive data
  • Ask before sharing externally
  • Redact sensitive info in examples
  • Follow PAI security protocols

Key Principles

  1. Dual Context - Handles both personal and project TELOS seamlessly
    • Personal TELOS: ~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/ (in CORE USER directory)
    • Project TELOS: User-specified directories
  2. Auto-Detection - Determines context from user question
  3. Flexible Discovery - Finds files regardless of structure
  4. TELOS Methodology - Applies relationships, dependencies, goals, narratives
  5. Parallel Execution - Up to 10 engineers for dashboard builds
  6. Visual Excellence - Beautiful outputs with shadcn/ui + Aceternity
  7. Privacy-Aware - Respects sensitive data
  8. Integrated - Works with development, research, and other skills

TELOS is {principal.name}'s life operating system AND project analysis framework. One skill, two powerful contexts.

Remember: Personal TELOS files live at ~/.claude/skills/CORE/USER/TELOS/ (in the CORE USER directory)