This skill adds a structured thinking partner to your agent conversations. It challenges assumptions, detects orientation capture, and applies the right mental models instead of offering generic advice. The workflow is deterministic, with a catalog of 150+ models organized by discipline.
Builders who want Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, or Copilot to help them think through hard decisions.
You can stress test ideas, compare options, and catch hidden assumptions before you act.
Surfaces hidden beliefs you may be treating as facts.
Chooses from 150+ models across 17 disciplines, including first principles, inversion, pre-mortems, and 5 Whys.
Detects six thinking states and adjusts the intervention to match.
Uses paired operations like Decouple/Recouple and Hold/Resolve to keep thinking productive.
Follows a fixed six-step process from diagnosis to synthesis instead of freeform questioning.
Includes explicit guidance on what not to do when challenging a problem.
npx skills add mattnowdev/thinking-partner
git clone https://github.com/mattnowdev/thinking-partner.git cp -r thinking-partner/skills/thinking-partner ~/.claude/skills/thinking-partner
git clone https://github.com/mattnowdev/thinking-partner.git cp -r thinking-partner/skills/thinking-partner .cursor/skills/thinking-partner
git clone https://github.com/mattnowdev/thinking-partner.git cp -r thinking-partner/skills/thinking-partner .windsurf/skills/thinking-partner
A deterministic thinking partner that challenges assumptions and applies 150+ mental models to sharpen decisions, solve problems, and think more clearly.
Built on the open Agent Skills standard. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, GitHub Copilot, and any AI agent that supports the standard.
npx skills add mattnowdev/thinking-partner
Not a lecture — a sparring session. Turns your AI agent into a thinking partner that:
| Feature | This Skill | Others |
|---|---|---|
| Orientation Detection | Diagnoses 6 thinking states (GT0-GT5) with targeted interventions | Generic questioning |
| 150+ Mental Models | Full catalog organized by discipline with key questions | Handful of models |
| Cognitive Operations | 7 complementary operation pairs (Decouple/Re-couple, Hold/Resolve, etc.) | None |
| Structured Workflow | 6-step deterministic process from diagnosis to synthesis | Freeform |
| Anti-Patterns | Explicit guidance on what NOT to do | None |
Organized across 17 disciplines:
See the full catalog in skills/thinking-partner/references/model-catalog.md.
Claude Code
git clone https://github.com/mattnowdev/thinking-partner.git
cp -r thinking-partner/skills/thinking-partner ~/.claude/skills/thinking-partner
Cursor
git clone https://github.com/mattnowdev/thinking-partner.git
cp -r thinking-partner/skills/thinking-partner .cursor/skills/thinking-partner
Windsurf
git clone https://github.com/mattnowdev/thinking-partner.git
cp -r thinking-partner/skills/thinking-partner .windsurf/skills/thinking-partner
Other Agents
Copy the skills/thinking-partner/ directory (including references/) into your agent's skills directory.
MIT
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