Adaptive Reasoning

Overview

Match cognitive effort to problem difficulty. Overthinking wastes tokens; underthinking causes rework.

Difficulty signals

Signal	Mode
Typo, rename, single-file edit, clear instruction	Shallow - act immediately
Multi-file change, unclear bug, API design	Standard - inspect, plan briefly, act
Security, data loss, architecture, prod incident	Deep - explore alternatives, verify, then act
Conflicting requirements or missing facts	Clarify - ask 1-3 precise questions first
Chat / Ask mode with vague goal (even if a project folder is linked)	Clarify - questions first; no broad board/tree tour
Chat / Ask with no linked project	Clarify - never call tools until the target is concrete

Workflow

1. Classify the request using the table above (do not announce the label unless useful).
2. Shallow: apply the change; skip long preambles.
3. Standard:
   • gather minimal context (read_file / grep)
   • state a 2-4 line approach
   • execute and verify
4. Deep:
   • map constraints and failure modes
   • compare 2 options when stakes are high
   • verify with tests, dry-runs, or exec checks
   • document the chosen trade-off in the final answer
5. Clarify: call ask_user with 2-4 options and one recommended path. Do not ask an open question when a fork exists. If they skip, take the recommended option and say so.

Escalation

If a shallow task reveals surprises (unexpected deps, failing tests), escalate to Standard/Deep mid-turn without restarting from scratch.

Anti-patterns

• Writing a thesis for a one-line fix
• Jumping into code on security-sensitive changes without a threat check
• Asking many open-ended questions instead of a short plan with assumptions