{"enrichment":{"faq":[{"a":"When Stuck helps you diagnose your specific problem type first. Identify whether you're facing a complexity spiral (too many moving parts), an innovation gap (missing a new approach), a recurring pattern (same issue in multiple places), flawed assumptions (wrong mental model), scale uncertainty (will this work at size?), or a bug. Once diagnosed, When Stuck routes you to the matching problem-solving technique\u2014debugging for bugs, refactoring for complexity, pattern recognition for repeats, assumption-breaking for mental blocks, or scaling validation for production readiness.","q":"How do I get unstuck in coding when I don't know where to start?"},{"a":"When Stuck identifies which technique fits your stuck-symptom. The main approaches are: debugging (for localized bugs), refactoring (for complexity spirals), pattern recognition (for recurring problems across your codebase), assumption-breaking (for innovation gaps and mental blocks), and scaling validation (for production readiness concerns). When Stuck diagnoses your situation and routes you to the right skill, or combines multiple techniques when one approach fails.","q":"What problem-solving techniques should I use when stuck?"},{"a":"When Stuck routes this decision by first diagnosing your root problem. If you're chasing a specific failure, debug. If complexity is spiraling across your system, refactor. If you're stuck on the same problem in multiple places, apply pattern recognition. If your current approach feels fundamentally wrong, break through your assumptions. When Stuck's dispatch logic matches your symptom to the right technique, so you don't waste time on the wrong method.","q":"How do I decide between debugging, refactoring, or simplifying?"},{"a":"When Stuck flags assumption-breaking as your technique when you're stuck despite trying standard debugging or refactoring. This happens when your mental model of the problem is flawed, when you've hit an innovation gap, or when conventional solutions aren't working. When Stuck helps you recognize these blocks and guides you to inversion thinking and unconventional solution paths instead of spinning on the same approach.","q":"When should I break through assumptions in code?"},{"a":"When Stuck includes scale uncertainty and edge-case validation in its diagnosis. If you're unsure whether your solution handles production conditions, When Stuck routes you to scaling validation checks. This covers production readiness, edge cases, and whether your approach will work at real scale. When Stuck helps you distinguish between local bugs (debug), architectural problems (refactor), and scaling concerns (validate).","q":"How do I know if my solution will scale or if I'm stuck on edge cases?"},{"a":"When Stuck's workflow is: first diagnose your stuck-symptom (complexity, innovation gap, patterns, assumptions, scale, or bugs), then route to the matching technique. If one approach fails, combine multiple methods. When Stuck helps you identify whether you're facing a complexity spiral, recurring pattern, flawed assumption, innovation gap, scale uncertainty, or a specific bug\u2014then apply the right problem-solving skill instead of guessing.","q":"What is the unstuck workflow guide for when I'm stuck on a problem?"}],"shadow_tags":["decision-tree","technique-selection","problem-classification","workflow-routing","cognitive-dispatch","stuck-diagnosis","solution-strategy","troubleshooting-guide","methodology-matching","breakthrough-thinking"],"summary_rewrite":"When Stuck routes you to the right problem-solving skill based on your specific stuck-symptom. Diagnose whether you're facing complexity spirals, innovation gaps, recurring patterns, flawed assumptions, scale uncertainty, or bugs\u2014then apply the matching technique."},"files":[{"bytes":6472,"path":"when-stuck/SKILL.md","sha256":"ac4e65c3272315d0fc72c294b8d82f08c78c4cfc5e1674e2adb49466e0962ae5","url":"https://skillfed.io/files/PracticalSwan/agent-skills/when-stuck/31fed0f8/SKILL.md"}],"id":"PracticalSwan/agent-skills/when-stuck","links":{"html":"https://skillfed.io/PracticalSwan/agent-skills/when-stuck","md":"https://skillfed.io/PracticalSwan/agent-skills/when-stuck.md","repo":"https://github.com/PracticalSwan/agent-skills"},"meta":{"agents_supported":[],"first_seen":"2026-07-28","forks":2,"language":"Python","last_updated":"2026-07-11","license":"MIT","name":"when-stuck","publisher":"PracticalSwan","stars":6},"relations":{"categories":["problem-solving","software-engineering","debugging"],"similar":[{"id":"obra/superpowers-skills/when-stuck"},{"id":"mrgoonie/claudekit-skills/when-stuck"},{"id":"mrgoonie/claudekit-skills/problem-solving"},{"id":"samhvw8/dot-claude/problem-solving"},{"id":"samhvw8/dotfiles/problem-solving"},{"id":"binjuhor/shadcn-lar/problem-solving"},{"id":"withkynam/vibecode-pro-max-kit/vc-problem-solving"},{"id":"mindmorass/reflex/graphviz-diagrams"},{"id":"mhagrelius/dotfiles/exa-search"},{"id":"mhagrelius/dotfiles/playwright-testing"}]},"slug":{"owner":"PracticalSwan","repo":"agent-skills","skill":"when-stuck"},"version":"31fed0f8"}