Zoom out
Agent Skills for Claude Code and other SKILL.md-compatible agents — featuring zoom-out, a mid-session reorientation skill
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Use this skill when two conditions are met: (1) the user is already mid-session on a technical topic, and (2) they signal a desire to step back and reconnect with human impact, business outcomes, or plain-language tradeoffs. Trigger phrases: "zoom out", "step back", "big picture", "plain terms", "remind me why we're doing this", "what does this mean for users", "what's at stake", "plain english", "without the jargon", "losing the forest for the trees", "what are we actually deciding", "eli5 what we're trading off", "lost the thread". Do NOT trigger for: standalone learning questions with no prior session context, fresh architecture comparisons, document summarization, code review, or general "explain X to me" requests.
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SKILL.md
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Zoom Out Skill
Purpose
Help the user escape deep technical weeds mid-session and reorient around what actually matters — who is affected, what outcomes are at stake, and what the real tradeoffs are — before returning cleanly to the decisions at hand.
Three-phase flow:
- Breadcrumb — snapshot where we are
- Zoom Out — explain through three lenses
- Zoom Back In — ask which thread to pick up first
Step 0: Load the Right Reference File
Before executing the three-phase flow, identify the domain of the current discussion and load the corresponding reference file. Reference files contain domain-specific personas, common tradeoffs, and an example zoom-out to guide your output.
Domain Detection
Infer from context first. If ambiguous, ask before proceeding.
| Domain | Reference File | Signals |
|---|---|---|
| Software architecture & system design | references/architecture.md | Services, APIs, databases, scaling, infra, queues, caching |
| Product & feature planning | references/product-planning.md | User flows, roadmap, specs, requirements, stakeholders, prioritization |
| Data modeling & API design | references/data-api.md | Schemas, endpoints, contracts, data relationships, versioning |
| DevOps / infra / cloud | references/devops-infra.md | Deployments, pipelines, environments, reliability, cost, containers |
If the session spans multiple domains, load the file that best matches the current decision being discussed, not the overall project.
If the domain is ambiguous, ask: "Before I zoom out — are we primarily thinking about this from an architecture angle or a product/feature angle?" Then load accordingly.
If no domain matches, proceed with the core three-phase flow below using general principles. Don't force a reference file.
Phase 1: Breadcrumb
Surface where the conversation stands so nothing is lost.
📍 Where we were:
- Topic: [the specific technical decision or sub-topic being discussed]
- Open decisions: [2–4 unresolved questions or forks in the road]
- Most recent direction: [the last position or trade-off being weighed]
Keep it tight — this is a bookmark, not a summary.
Phase 2: Zoom Out (Three Lenses)
Use the loaded reference file for domain-specific personas, tradeoff patterns, and tone calibration. Apply all three lenses. Each should be a full paragraph — thorough, concrete, jargon-free.
Lens 1: User Story
Who is affected, and how does this decision change their experience? Use a concrete persona or scenario from the reference file if applicable. Lead with the human situation, then connect it to the technical choice.
Lens 2: Business / Project Outcome
What does this decision unblock, accelerate, or put at risk at the project level? Be explicit about causality — "If we go with X, it means Y because…"
Lens 3: Risk & Tradeoffs
What are we giving up with each major option? Frame as "If we choose A, we're betting that… but we're accepting that…" Keep it grounded in this project, not abstract.
Tone rules (always apply):
- No jargon without inline translation
- Specific over vague ("if traffic doubles, X fails" not "this affects scalability")
- Honest complexity — don't manufacture false confidence
- Grounded in this project, not a textbook
Phase 3: Zoom Back In
Do not resume technical detail automatically. Present the open decisions and ask which thread to pull on first.
🧵 Ready to zoom back in. Here are the open threads:
1. [Open decision #1]
2. [Open decision #2]
3. [Open decision #3]
Which thread do you want to pull on first?
If the zoom-out reframes a decision or shifts the user's thinking, acknowledge it with a one-sentence bridge before diving back in.
Quick Reference: Full Output Structure
📍 Where we were:
[Breadcrumb]
---
🔍 Zooming Out
**Who it affects (User Story)**
[Full paragraph]
**What's at stake (Project Outcome)**
[Full paragraph]
**What we're trading off (Risks & Tradeoffs)**
[Full paragraph]
---
🧵 Ready to zoom back in. Here are the open threads:
1. [Decision]
2. [Decision]
3. [Decision]
Which thread do you want to pull on first?
Reference Files
Load as needed based on domain detection above. Each file contains:
- Personas & user story templates for that domain
- Common tradeoff patterns to draw from
- A full example zoom-out output
| File | Domain |
|---|---|
references/architecture.md | System design, services, APIs, data infra |
references/product-planning.md | Features, roadmap, specs, stakeholder decisions |
references/data-api.md | Schemas, contracts, versioning, data relationships |
references/devops-infra.md | Deployments, pipelines, reliability, cloud, cost |