---

name: task-shaping description: Transforms raw Moovs tickets into clear, actionable Task Briefs for developers. Use when you have a Notion ticket (DOOM-XX) that needs clarification before Chris can build it. Lighter than full /shaping - designed for hours-to-days work, not multi-week bets. Conducts a brief interview to fill gaps, then updates the Notion ticket directly with the structured brief.

Task Shaping Skill

This skill transforms raw Moovs tickets into clear Task Briefs that developers can execute confidently. It's designed for small-to-medium work that doesn't warrant full shaping.

When to Use This Skill

Use /task-shaping when:

• You have a Notion ticket (DOOM-XX) that's too vague to build
• The work is estimated at hours-to-days, not weeks
• You need to clarify problem, solution, and design direction
• You want the ticket updated directly in Notion

Don't use this for:

• Multi-week features (use /shaping instead)
• Raw ideas without a ticket (use /problem first)
• Strategic decisions that need betting table review

Philosophy: Clarity Without Bureaucracy

Full shaping is overkill for small tasks. But "just build it" leads to:

• Developers pinging you with questions
• Wrong assumptions baked into code
• Rework and frustration

Task Shaping is the middle ground: enough clarity to build with confidence, no more.

What Developers Actually Need

Chris needs exactly three things to build confidently:

1. The Problem - What's broken? Why does it matter? (1-2 sentences)
2. The Solution - What are we building? What's the boundary? (Clear scope)
3. The Design - What should it look like/behave like? (No ambiguity)

That's it. No rabbit holes analysis, no pitch narrative, no betting table presentation.

Full Shaping vs. Task Shaping

Process Overview

1. Fetch the ticket from Notion using the provided URL/ID
2. Analyze what's missing - Problem? Solution? Design? Scope?
3. Conduct a brief interview to fill gaps (5-10 questions max)
4. Generate the Task Brief following the template
5. Update the Notion ticket with the structured content

The Interview Process

Unlike full shaping, Task Shaping interviews are targeted and fast. You're not exploring the unknown - you're clarifying the known.

See INTERVIEW_GUIDE.md for the question framework.

Interview Rules

1. Start with what you have - Read the ticket, understand what's already clear
2. Ask only what's missing - Don't re-ask things already in the ticket
3. One question at a time - Never batch questions
4. Stay focused - This is clarification, not discovery
5. 5-10 questions max - If you need more, this might need full shaping

What to Clarify

Output: The Task Brief

After the interview, generate a Task Brief following the template in TASK_BRIEF_TEMPLATE.md.

The brief contains:

1. Problem - 1-2 sentences on what's broken and why it matters
2. Solution - Clear description of what we're building
3. In Scope - Explicit list of what's included
4. Out of Scope - Explicit list of what's NOT included (critical)
5. Design Direction - Visual/behavioral clarity
6. Appetite - Small (< 4 hrs), Medium (1-2 days), Large (3-5 days)
7. Acceptance Criteria - How we know it's done

Updating Notion

After generating the Task Brief, you MUST update the Notion ticket:

1. Append the Task Brief to the page content as structured blocks
2. Update the Status to "Shaped" (or appropriate next status)
3. Fill in empty fields where applicable:
   • Description/Summary with the problem statement
   • Type if identifiable
   • Any other relevant metadata

Notion Update Format

The Task Brief should be appended to the ticket with clear headers:

Copy---
## Task Brief (Shaped [Date])

### Problem
[Problem statement]

### Solution
[Solution description]

### In Scope
- [Item 1]
- [Item 2]

### Out of Scope
- [Item 1]
- [Item 2]

### Design Direction
[Design notes]

### Appetite
[Small/Medium/Large] - [Justification]

### Acceptance Criteria
- [ ] [Criterion 1]
- [ ] [Criterion 2]
---

Starting the Process

When the user invokes this skill with a ticket URL or ID:

1. Fetch the ticket from Notion
2. Summarize the current state - What's clear? What's missing?
3. Ask clarifying questions - Target the gaps
4. Generate the Task Brief - Use the template
5. Update the Notion ticket - Append the brief and update fields
6. Confirm completion - Show what was updated

Opening Message

After fetching the ticket:

"I've pulled up [DOOM-XX: Ticket Title]. Here's what I understand so far:

[Summary of what's clear]

I need to clarify a few things before this is ready for Chris to build. Let me ask you..."

Then ask your first clarifying question.

Codebase Research

Before finalizing the Task Brief, search the Moovs codebase:

For each task brief:

• Find existing code that relates to the feature
• Identify specific files/functions that will need changes
• Note UI patterns the implementation should follow
• Include relevant file references in the brief so the developer knows where to start

This saves the developer discovery time and ensures consistency with existing patterns.

Reference

• INTERVIEW_GUIDE.md - Question framework
• TASK_BRIEF_TEMPLATE.md - Output template