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Agent skill

Task To First Step

by mohitagw15856 in mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills

Shrink a task you're avoiding down to a first step so small it's almost impossible not to do — beating activation-energy paralysis.

MITAuto-check passed

Install Task To First Step

skills CLI
$ npx skills add mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills --skill task-to-first-step -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills task-to-first-step --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/task-to-first-step .claude/skills/task-to-first-step && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
task-to-first-step
GitHub stars
1.4k
Token cost
~894 tokens
SKILL.md length
475 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
1,348
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Shrink a task you're avoiding down to a first step so small it's almost impossible not to do — beating activation-energy paralysis.

  • Works in 5 steps: Find the true first physical action. Not… → Shrink until resistance dies. If it… → Make it decision-free. The step should… → …
  • Asked I cant get started on
  • SKILL.md covers What This Skill Produces, Required Inputs, Framework: Shrink Until It's… and Output Format, plus 3 more sections
  • Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

Task To First Step is an agent skill from mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills. Shrink a task you're avoiding down to a first step so small it's almost impossible not to do — beating activation-energy paralysis. Use when asked I can't get started on, help me start this task, this feels too big to begin, or break this down so I can start. Produces the dreaded task decomposed to a laughably tiny first physical action (open the doc, write one sentence), why that specific step lowers the barrier, and the next couple of micro-steps — so starting stops requiring willpower.

Its SKILL.md is about 890 tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.

The repository describes itself as: 1255 professional Agent Skills for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Cursor & Codex — PRDs, postmortems, leases, medical bills, layoffs, go-bags, new countries. Plain markdown, MIT, in… The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • Asked I cant get started on
  • Help me start this task
  • This feels too big to begin
  • Break this down so I can start

Example prompts

  • “re avoiding down to a first step so small it”
  • “/task-to-first-step”

Workflow steps

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

  1. Find the true first physical action. Not "write the report" — "open a blank doc and type the title." The first physical move, not the task.
  2. Shrink until resistance dies. If it still feels heavy, make it smaller — "write one bad sentence," "read the first email." The bar should…
  3. Make it decision-free. The step should require zero further choices — decisions are their own activation cost.
  4. Give permission to stop. Frame it as "just do this one thing, then you can quit" — which removes the pressure and usually starts a chain.
  5. Queue the momentum steps. A couple more micro-steps ready, so once moving, there's no fresh cliff.

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 1cbf1f0. 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.

    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

Task To First Step loads about 894 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 128 tokens; SKILL.md has 475 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~128
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~894

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

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

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 mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills at commit 1cbf1f0, republished under its MIT licence (© mohitagw15856). 475 words, ~894 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/task-to-first-step/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
task-to-first-step
description
Shrink a task you're avoiding down to a first step so small it's almost impossible not to do — beating activation-energy paralysis. Use when asked I can't get started on, help me start this task, this feels too big to begin, or break this down so I can start. Produces the dreaded task decomposed to a laughably tiny first physical action (open the doc, write one sentence), why that specific step lowers the barrier, and the next couple of micro-steps — so starting stops requiring willpower.

Task to First Step

The hardest part of a dreaded task is the starting — the activation energy. Willpower is the wrong tool; shrinking the step is the right one. This takes the task you've been avoiding and reduces the first move to something almost too small to resist (open the file, write one bad sentence, put on the shoes). Momentum does the rest — but only after the first tiny action gets you moving.

What This Skill Produces

  • The laughably small first step — a single physical action so tiny that not doing it feels absurd
  • Why it works — how that step sidesteps the resistance (it's concrete, immediate, and requires no decisions)
  • The next 2–3 micro-steps — the follow-ons, each still small, to ride the momentum
  • The "just this" framing — permission to stop after the first step if needed (which usually means you won't)

Required Inputs

Ask for these if not provided:

  • The task — the thing you're avoiding
  • Where you're stuck — is it starting, or somewhere in the middle
  • Why it feels heavy — too big, boring, scary, or unclear
  • Your setup — what's around you (so the first step fits reality)

Framework: Shrink Until It's Trivial

  1. Find the true first physical action. Not "write the report" — "open a blank doc and type the title." The first physical move, not the task.
  2. Shrink until resistance dies. If it still feels heavy, make it smaller — "write one bad sentence," "read the first email." The bar should feel almost silly.
  3. Make it decision-free. The step should require zero further choices — decisions are their own activation cost.
  4. Give permission to stop. Frame it as "just do this one thing, then you can quit" — which removes the pressure and usually starts a chain.
  5. Queue the momentum steps. A couple more micro-steps ready, so once moving, there's no fresh cliff.
Show full SKILL.md (170 more words)Show less

Output Format

Task: [the thing you're avoiding]

👉 The only first step: [a tiny, concrete, physical action] — ~[a minute or two]. Why this works: [concrete · immediate · no decisions]. You can stop after that. (You probably won't.)

If you're rolling, next: 2. [micro-step] · 3. [micro-step] · 4. [micro-step]

Quality Checks

  • The first step is a single physical action, not the task
  • It's shrunk until resistance would feel absurd
  • It requires no further decisions
  • Permission to stop after step one is given
  • A few momentum micro-steps follow

Anti-Patterns

  • "Just start the report" — that's the task, not a step.
  • A first step that hides more decisions.
  • Still-too-big steps that don't dissolve the resistance.
  • A guilt-laden "you must finish" framing that raises the barrier.

Example Trigger Phrases

  • "I can't get started on my tax return — help me begin."
  • "This project feels too big to start."
  • "Break down cleaning the garage so I can actually start."
  • "I keep avoiding this email. Help me just start it."
  • "Give me a first step so small I can't say no."

© mohitagw15856, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

Just SKILL.md in skills/task-to-first-step of mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 1cbf1f0

Compare with similar skills

Task To First Step next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Task To First Step compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Task To First Step this skillmohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills1.4k—~894Automated safety check: PassMIT
Autofocus Avoidancethedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist74k—~508Automated safety check: PassMIT
Avoid Evalthedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist74k—~554Automated safety check: PassMIT
Avoid AI Writingsickn33/agentic-awesome-skills47k2 repos~684Automated safety check: PassMIT
Avoid AI Writingwshobson/agents40k—~1.9kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Avoid AI Writing Routerconorbronsdon/avoid-ai-writing4.9k—~1.8kAutomated safety check: PassMIT

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Questions about Task To First Step

What does Task To First Step do?

Shrink a task you're avoiding down to a first step so small it's almost impossible not to do — beating activation-energy paralysis. Task To First Step is an agent skill from mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills. Shrink a task you're avoiding down to a first step so small it's almost impossible not to do — beating activation-energy paralysis.

When should I use Task To First Step?

Task To First Step fits situations like: asked I cant get started on; help me start this task; this feels too big to begin; break this down so I can start.

How do I install Task To First Step in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills --skill task-to-first-step -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/task-to-first-step in mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills) into .claude/skills/task-to-first-step in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Task To First Step in Codex?

Run `npx skills add mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills --skill task-to-first-step -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/task-to-first-step in mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills) into .agents/skills/task-to-first-step in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Task To First Step in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills --skill task-to-first-step -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/task-to-first-step, .gemini/skills/task-to-first-step, .github/skills/task-to-first-step and .opencode/skills/task-to-first-step in your project.

What does Task To First Step need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Task To First Step is instructions for the agent only.

Does Task To First Step access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Task To First Step safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Task To First Step use?

Task To First Step is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Task To First Step use?

About 894 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 3.6k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Task To First Step?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Task To First Step: Autofocus Avoidance (thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist, 74k stars), Avoid Eval (thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist, 74k stars), Avoid AI Writing (sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills, 47k stars) and Avoid AI Writing (wshobson/agents, 40k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Task To First Step?

mohitagw15856 (a GitHub user) maintains it in mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills, which has 1,433 GitHub stars. The repository holds 1,348 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 8, 2026.

Source: mohitagw15856/pm-claude-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.