Meta Structured Problem

What it does

When your agent uses it

• The user faces a complex
• Ambiguous problem and needs to decompose it systematically
• Structure a consulting-style analysis
• Organize recommendations clearly — even if they say where do I start

Example prompts

• “where do I start”
• “this problem is too big”
• “help me break this down”
• “/meta-structured-problem”

Workflow steps

5 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.

1. 1Form an initial hypothesis ("Profit declined because churn increased")
2. 2Identify what evidence would prove/disprove it
3. 3Gather that specific evidence
4. 4Refine or reject the hypothesis
5. 5Repeat

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 4e7f4f8. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

• Tool permissions

  Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

  From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

• Runs code

  No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md (its code samples are markdown).

  From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

• Network

  No URLs in SKILL.md.

  From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

• Credentials

  Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

  From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Meta Structured Problem loads about 1.4k tokens when it runs, and up to ~6.5k if it reads all its reference files. Until then it costs about 112 tokens; SKILL.md has 459 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it

~112

When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches

~1.4k

With references · SKILL.md plus every file in references/, read only if the agent opens them

~6.5k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from asgard-ai-platform/skills at commit 4e7f4f8, republished under its MIT licence (© asgard-ai-platform). 459 words, ~1,390 tokens.

name

meta-structured-problem

description

Apply structured problem-solving using MECE principle, issue trees, hypothesis-driven approach, and the Pyramid Principle. Use this skill when the user faces a complex, ambiguous problem and needs to decompose it systematically, structure a consulting-style analysis, or organize recommendations clearly — even if they say 'where do I start', 'this problem is too big', 'help me break this down', or 'structure my thinking'.

metadata.category

WP-22 跨學科

metadata.tags

meta-thinking, structured-problem-solving, mece, mckinsey

IRON LAW: MECE or It's Not Structured

Every decomposition must be MECE:
- Mutually Exclusive: No overlap between categories
- Collectively Exhaustive: No gaps — all possibilities covered

"Revenue = New customers + Existing customers" is MECE ✓
"Revenue = Online + Enterprise + Growth" is NOT MECE ✗ (overlapping)

"Why is profit declining?"
├── Revenue declining?
│   ├── Volume down?
│   │   ├── New customer acquisition down?
│   │   └── Existing customer churn up?
│   └── Price down?
│       ├── Discounting increased?
│       └── Mix shift to lower-priced products?
└── Costs increasing?
    ├── COGS up?
    └── OpEx up?

# Structured Analysis: {Problem}

## Problem Statement
{One sentence, specific and measurable}

## Issue Tree
{MECE decomposition — text or visual}

## Hypothesis
{Initial hypothesis with rationale}

## Evidence
| Branch | Hypothesis | Evidence | Verdict |
|--------|-----------|---------|---------|
| {branch} | {sub-hypothesis} | {data found} | Confirmed/Rejected |

## Synthesis (Pyramid Structure)
**Recommendation**: {answer first}

**Supporting Arguments**:
1. {argument 1 with evidence}
2. {argument 2 with evidence}
3. {argument 3 with evidence}

## Next Steps
1. {action item}

Market share declining
├── Our growth slowing?
│   ├── New user acquisition down?
│   │   ├── Marketing spend reduced?
│   │   └── Conversion rate dropped?
│   └── Existing user activity down?
│       ├── Order frequency declining?
│       └── Users churning?
└── Competitors growing faster?
    ├── New entrant capturing share?
    └── Existing competitor accelerating?

© asgard-ai-platform, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

SKILL.md and 3 other files (references) in meta-structured-problem of asgard-ai-platform/skills.

• SKILL.md
• examples/sample_scenario.md
• references/issue-tree-templates.md
• references/pyramid-principle.md

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 4e7f4f8