Vol. V · The Harness · V.5
Planning and Todos
Long-horizon work needs an external plan the model can read and rewrite. A todo list is a tool, not a thought.
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Doctrine
- Write the plan to a file or a structured store. Thoughts evaporate; files persist.
- Update the plan as a tool call so it shows up in traces.
- A plan is not permission to skip evals. It is a compass, not a contract with reality.
The planner as a tool
Deep Agents ships a planning tool. Cline has plan/act modes. OpenHands and DeerFlow keep task lists. The model that can mark items done is less likely to wander. Combine with Factor 6: a paused agent resumes by reading the plan, not by reconstructing intent from a novel-length transcript.
Anti-patterns
- A 40-step plan generated once and never revised.
- Planning forever without a first action.