Restart a Personal Project
Interaction
When missing information materially changes the outcome and the host exposes a dedicated user-input or question tool, use that tool. Ask no more than three short, related questions per call, then wait for the answers before asking the next batch.
Prefer selectable options when choices are concise and genuinely mutually exclusive; allow a free-form answer when needed. Do not present a long questionnaire in normal chat. If no native input tool is available, ask one concise blocking question at a time. For non-blocking gaps, state the assumption and continue.
Recover the project from evidence, not nostalgia for the original plan.
Reconstruct the state
Read the existing files, notes, materials, messages, and last known output. Capture what exists, what works, what is unresolved, and the last completed action using PROJECT-STATE-FORMAT.md.
Do not begin by redesigning or recreating work the user already did.
Decide its future
Ask why it mattered then, why it matters now, and what current time, energy, money, collaborators, or obligations allow. Choose:
- continue
- reduce
- transfer or share
- archive deliberately
- abandon without guilt
Find the blockage
Name the primary blocker: missing information, excessive scope, setup cost, dependency, fear of evaluation, unclear next action, or reduced value. Require evidence from the project state.
Cut a finishable milestone
Define one observable result that delivers value or learning with current resources. Reduce scope before extending the deadline.
Prepare the first work block: materials ready, one concrete opening action, a time box, and a stopping point.
End every future session with a three-line handoff: current state, next action, and where materials are. The project should never again depend on reconstructing context from memory.