---

name: vision description: | Create or review a high-level vision document capturing project goals and purpose. Use when asked to "define the vision", "what is this project", "set goals", or when starting a new project that needs clarity on purpose and direction. license: MIT metadata: author: howells website: order: 2 desc: Project north star summary: Define what you're building and why. This document guides every future decision—yours and the AI's. what: | Vision creates a concise document (500-700 words) capturing why the project exists, who it's for, and what you're explicitly NOT building. Arc reads this document in future sessions, so the AI always understands the bigger picture when making implementation decisions. why: | Projects drift. Features creep. Without a reference point, both you and the AI lose sight of the goal. The vision document is that reference—something you return to when decisions get hard, and something Arc consults to stay aligned with your intent. decisions: - Written for two audiences: you and the AI. Clear enough for both to act on. - Non-goals section mandatory. What you won't build prevents scope creep. - Lives in docs/vision.md. Arc reads it automatically in future sessions.

Vision Workflow

Create or review a 500-700 word vision document that captures the high-level goals and purpose of the app or codebase.

<progress_context> Use Read tool: docs/progress.md (first 50 lines)

Check for recent work that might inform vision decisions. </progress_context>

Process

Step 1: Check for Existing Vision

Use Read tool: docs/vision.md

If file exists: Read it, then ask: "I found an existing vision document. Would you like to:"

1. Review and discuss it
2. Update it based on new direction
3. Start fresh

If not exists: Proceed to Step 2.

Step 2: Gather Context

Ask one question at a time:

1. "What is this project? (one sentence)"
2. "Who is it for?"
3. "What problem does it solve?"
4. "What does success look like?"
5. "Any constraints or non-goals?"

Step 3: Draft Vision

Write a 500-700 word vision document covering:

Copy# Vision

## Purpose
[One paragraph: What is this and why does it exist?]

## Goals
[3-5 bullet points: What are we trying to achieve?]

## Target Users
[Who is this for? What do they need?]

## Success Criteria
[How do we know if we've succeeded?]

## Non-Goals
[What are we explicitly NOT trying to do?]

## Principles
[2-3 guiding principles for decisions]

Step 4: Validate

Present the draft in sections. After each: "Does this capture it?"

Step 5: Save

Copymkdir -p docs
# Write to docs/vision.md
git add docs/vision.md
git commit -m "docs: add project vision"

<progress_append> After creating or updating the vision, append to progress journal:

Copy## YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM — /arc:vision
**Task:** [Create / Update] vision document
**Outcome:** Complete
**Files:** docs/vision.md
**Decisions:**
- Purpose: [one-liner]
**Next:** /arc:ideate or continue

---

</progress_append>

Interop

• /arc:ideate reads vision for context
• /arc:suggest references vision as lowest-priority source
• /arc:letsgo checks vision alignment