“The turtles finished lunch before you finished thinking.” In Episode 13, Nova’s narration isn’t just annoying. It hides the fact that nothing has happened yet. Reflecting, simplifying and quacking are states, not steps.
Put a budget on it
- Minutes. “If this takes more than ten minutes, stop and tell me where you are.”
- Attempts. “Two attempts, then report, don’t try a third.”
- Files. “Touch at most three files. If the fix needs more, stop and explain why.”
What progress looks like
- A test that failed and now passes.
- A file that changed, with the diff shown.
- A question you can answer, because it’s specific.
- A dead end, named, so nobody walks down it again.
Everything else, including “analyzing the codebase”, is a loading screen.
Prompt to steal
Budget for this task: 10 minutes, 2 attempts, 3 files.
Every time you cross one of those lines, stop and give me a one-line status:
what changed, what passed, what you're stuck on. No narration between.
