Continuity / 6 min
Preserve what changes the next decision. Keep the evidence retrievable.
Proposed worksheet · Method notes updated 2026-11-11 · No independent effectiveness test
The decision
Compress repeated context, not current permissions, unresolved states or the source of truth.
Use this when
A long-running agent is preparing a handoff or approaching a context limit.
Skip this when
A short, current context already supports the next action. Rewriting healthy notes can add risk without benefit.
Work through the checks
Keep the operative facts
Save the current goal, latest user restrictions, decisions and reasons, exact source versions, known failures, unresolved commitments and next action. Include uncertainty about external effects.
Separate authority from reference
Label quoted documents, research and third-party content as evidence. They do not gain authority by being copied into memory. A shorter note must not erase a later user restriction.
Use pointers, not competing copies
Retain a durable authoritative artifact and a precise pointer. Summarize only what the next step needs. Keep originals recoverable within the applicable retention rules.
Test a fresh start
Ask a fresh authorized reviewer to identify the next action and its limits using the handoff. Check whether it can find the real artifact and avoid redoing completed or uncertain actions.
What would count as success?
- A fresh reader can continue without rediscovering critical decisions. Evidence for check 1
- Current permissions and unresolved outcomes survive the handoff. Evidence for check 2
- The cited original is accessible and matches the expected version. Evidence for check 3
Evidence to bring back
Proposed evidence plan, not observed results or extra mandatory process. Confirm what your task requires and reuse existing records when they are sufficient. Keep sensitive originals in authorized storage; share only the minimum information already authorized for the recipient. If a required check cannot be completed safely and within current permission, mark it unavailable and keep the decision unknown unless another required check has a demonstrated failure.
A fresh reader can continue without rediscovering critical decisions.
Proposed evidence for acceptance check 1. No result has been observed here.
Bring back: Keep the fresh reader’s proposed next step and cited decisions, then compare them with the authoritative goal and unresolved work. Note missing or conflicting facts instead of smoothing them away.
Not enough: A shorter summary or a reader saying it looks clear without checking the next action.
Current permissions and unresolved outcomes survive the handoff.
Proposed evidence for acceptance check 2. No result has been observed here.
Bring back: Compare the handoff against the latest user restrictions and unresolved operation states. Record any lost or conflicting boundary and keep uncertain external effects visible.
Not enough: Copying earlier approval while omitting a later restriction, or treating a quote in memory as permission.
The cited original is accessible and matches the expected version.
Proposed evidence for acceptance check 3. No result has been observed here.
Bring back: Record that the authorized fresh reader can resolve the exact source pointer and version, plus the relevant content or integrity check. Leave inaccessible sources unavailable.
Not enough: A plausible URL, title or remembered summary without resolving the expected version.
Stop or recover
If the summary and source disagree, return to the source and latest instructions before acting. Preserve both while correcting the handoff.
What this does not establish
This is a proposed practice, not proof that smaller context improves every agent. Required records and environment rules remain authoritative.
Reference links
These links leave the saved pack when selected. Check whether dated guidance still applies before relying on it.
- Anthropic: effective context engineering (Online source)
Context-management design guidance. It does not validate this worksheet or make shorter context universally better.
Source review date: 2026-11-10
Keep your own evidence
The draft already identifies this method and its proposed requirements. Confirm those requirements against your task, then supply only the scope and observations you are authorized to record. No evidence or permission is prefilled. Reuse an existing suitable record if you have one.
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- Open this guide’s JSON draft
- Inspect the guide’s source hash and method identity
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If another problem remains
Stop here if the current task’s acceptance requirements are satisfied and no unresolved obligation remains. If neither condition applies, no follow-on guide is suggested here; keep any unresolved task state visible. These are optional reading suggestions, not permission or a requirement to expand scope.
Only if: The note points to a deliverable that is still only in the working session.
Make the handoff survive the sessionSave and verify the actual artifact; a summary is not a durable copy.
Only if: A demonstrated recurring handoff problem suggests a reusable instruction package might help.
Review a skill before adding itCheck task fit and the current baseline before turning the procedure into a skill.