Common Rationalizations - STOP

These rationalizations appear across multiple contexts. When you catch yourself thinking any of these, STOP - you're about to violate a skill.

Process Shortcuts

Excuse	Reality
"This is simple, can skip the process"	Simple tasks done wrong become complex problems.
"Just this once"	No exceptions. Process exists because exceptions fail.
"I'm confident this will work"	Confidence ≠ evidence. Run the verification.
"I'm tired"	Exhaustion ≠ excuse for shortcuts.
"No time for proper approach"	Shortcuts cost more time in rework.
"Partner won't notice"	They will. Trust is earned through consistency.
"Different words so rule doesn't apply"	Spirit over letter. Intent matters.

Excuse	Reality
"Should work now"	RUN the verification command.
"Looks correct"	Run it and see the output.
"Tests probably pass"	Probably ≠ verified. Run them.
"Linter passed, must be fine"	Linter ≠ compiler ≠ tests. Run everything.
"Partial check is enough"	Partial proves nothing about the whole.
"Agent said success"	Agents lie/hallucinate. Verify independently.

Excuse	Reality
"File probably exists"	Use tools to verify. Don't assume.
"Design mentioned it, must be there"	Codebase changes. Verify current state.
"I can verify quickly myself"	Use investigator agents. Prevents hallucination.
"User can figure it out during execution"	Your job is exact instructions. No ambiguity.

Excuse	Reality
"Can skip exploring alternatives"	Comparison reveals issues. Always propose 2-3.
"Partner knows what they want"	Questions reveal hidden constraints. Always ask.
"Whole design at once for efficiency"	Incremental validation catches problems early.
"Checklist is just suggestion"	Create TodoWrite todos. Track properly.
"Subtask can reference parent for details"	NO. Subtasks must be complete. NO placeholders, NO "see parent".
"I'll use placeholder and fill in later"	NO. Write actual content NOW. No meta-references like "[detailed above]".
"Design field is too long, use placeholder"	Length doesn't matter. Write full content. Placeholder defeats the purpose.
"Should I continue to the next task?"	YES. You have a TodoWrite plan. Execute it. Don't interrupt your own workflow.
"Let me ask user's preference for remaining tasks"	NO. The user gave you the work. Do it. Only ask at natural completion points.
"Should I stop here or keep going?"	Your TodoWrite list tells you. If tasks remain, continue.

Excuse	Reality
"Task is tracked in TodoWrite, don't need step tracking"	Tasks have 4-8 implementation steps. Without substep tracking, steps 4-8 get skipped.
"Made progress on the task, can move on"	Progress ≠ complete. All substeps must finish. 2/6 steps = 33%, not done.
"Other tasks are waiting, should continue"	Current task incomplete = blocked. Finish all substeps first.
"Can finish remaining steps later"	Later never comes. Complete all substeps now before closing task.

Excuse	Reality
"Small gaps don't matter"	Spec is contract. All criteria must be met.
"Will fix in next PR"	This PR should complete this work. Fix now.
"Partner will review anyway"	You review first. Don't delegate your quality check.
"Good enough for now"	"Now" becomes "forever". Do it right.

Excuse	Reality
"Test is obvious, can skip RED phase"	If you don't watch it fail, you don't know it works.
"Will adapt this code while writing test"	Delete it. Start fresh from the test.
"Can keep it as reference"	No. Delete means delete.
"Test is simple, don't need to run it"	Simple tests fail for subtle reasons. Run it.

Excuse	Reality
"I can research quickly myself"	Use agents. You'll hallucinate or waste context.
"Agent didn't find it first try, must not exist"	Be persistent. Refine query and try again.
"I know this codebase"	You don't know current state. Always verify.
"Obvious solution, skip research"	Codebase may have established pattern. Check first.

All of these mean: STOP. Follow the requirements exactly.

Rationalizations are how good processes fail:

No shortcuts. Follow the process. Every time.