Summary
Execution posture declares how executable a document intends to be.
It prevents forced structure while still enabling agent usefulness.
Documents should be as executable as they naturally allow — no more, no less.
Allowed Values
governing
- Defines constraints, rules, or standards
- Expected to change agent behavior
- High extraction value for context packs
operational
- Guides action without strict enforcement
- Playbooks, workflows, how-tos
- Moderate extraction expectations
exploratory
- Thinking tools, essays, design exploration
- Human-first
- Minimal or no executable structure required
routing
- Indexes, maps, glossaries
- Exists to point, not to govern
- Extraction focuses on links and triggers only
Required Frontmatter Field
execution_posture: governing | operational | exploratory | routing
Governing Principle
Executable structure is an affordance, not a requirement.
If a section would be forced or misleading, it should be omitted intentionally.
Compiler Expectations
- Governing docs: missing executable sections should WARN
- Operational docs: missing sections may WARN
- Exploratory and routing docs: missing sections are expected
Compilers must never auto-generate content.
Operating Constraints
- MUST declare execution_posture in frontmatter for all documents
- MUST NOT force executable structure on exploratory or routing documents
- MUST NOT auto-generate content to satisfy compiler requirements
- MUST treat executable structure as an affordance, not a requirement
- MUST omit sections deliberately if they would be forced or misleading
Defaults
- When uncertain about posture, start with operational and upgrade to governing based on observed impact
- Governing docs expect most required sections; operational expects a subset
- Exploratory and routing docs may omit executable sections entirely
- Compilers warn but do not block on missing sections
Failure Modes
- Forced Structure: Adding sections that don't apply just to satisfy tooling
- Posture Inflation: Marking documents as governing when they're actually operational
- Auto-Generation: Compilers filling in missing sections with generated content
- Template Cargo Cult: Copying section headings without meaningful content
- Exploratory Suppression: Forcing executable structure on thinking-tools and essays
Verification
- execution_posture is declared in frontmatter
- Section presence matches declared posture expectations
- Forced or empty sections have been deliberately omitted
- Compilers emit warnings, not errors, for missing sections
- No auto-generated content in executable sections