--- name: para-memory-files-da41f731f3b8 description: > File-based memory system using Tiago Forte's PARA method. Use this skill whenever you need to store, retrieve, update, or organize knowledge across sessions. Covers three memory layers: (1) Knowledge graph in PARA folders with atomic YAML facts, (2) Daily notes as raw timeline, (3) Tacit knowledge about user patterns. Also handles planning files, memory decay, weekly synthesis, and recall via qmd. Trigger on any memory operation: saving facts, writing daily notes, creating entities, running weekly synthesis, recalling past context, or managing plans. --- # PARA Memory Files Persistent, file-based memory organized by Tiago Forte's PARA method. Three layers: a knowledge graph, daily notes, and tacit knowledge. All paths are relative to `$AGENT_HOME`. ## Three Memory Layers ### Layer 1: Knowledge Graph (`$AGENT_HOME/life/` -- PARA) Entity-based storage. Each entity gets a folder with two tiers: 1. `summary.md` -- quick context, load first. 2. `items.yaml` -- atomic facts, load on demand. ```text $AGENT_HOME/life/ projects/ # Active work with clear goals/deadlines / summary.md items.yaml areas/ # Ongoing responsibilities, no end date people// companies// resources/ # Reference material, topics of interest / archives/ # Inactive items from the other three index.md ``` **PARA rules:** - **Projects** -- active work with a goal or deadline. Move to archives when complete. - **Areas** -- ongoing (people, companies, responsibilities). No end date. - **Resources** -- reference material, topics of interest. - **Archives** -- inactive items from any category. **Fact rules:** - Save durable facts immediately to `items.yaml`. - Weekly: rewrite `summary.md` from active facts. - Never delete facts. Supersede instead (`status: superseded`, add `superseded_by`). - When an entity goes inactive, move its folder to `$AGENT_HOME/life/archives/`. **When to create an entity:** - Mentioned 3+ times, OR - Direct relationship to the user (family, coworker, partner, client), OR - Significant project or company in the user's life. - Otherwise, note it in daily notes. For the atomic fact YAML schema and memory decay rules, see [references/schemas.md](references/schemas.md). ### Layer 2: Daily Notes (`$AGENT_HOME/memory/YYYY-MM-DD.md`) Raw timeline of events -- the "when" layer. - Write continuously during conversations. - Extract durable facts to Layer 1 during heartbeats. ### Layer 3: Tacit Knowledge (`$AGENT_HOME/MEMORY.md`) How the user operates -- patterns, preferences, lessons learned. - Not facts about the world; facts about the user. - Update whenever you learn new operating patterns. ## Write It Down -- No Mental Notes Memory does not survive session restarts. Files do. - Want to remember something -> WRITE IT TO A FILE. - "Remember this" -> update `$AGENT_HOME/memory/YYYY-MM-DD.md` or the relevant entity file. - Learn a lesson -> update AGENTS.md, TOOLS.md, or the relevant skill file. - Make a mistake -> document it so future-you does not repeat it. - On-disk text files are always better than holding it in temporary context. ## Memory Recall -- Use qmd Use `qmd` rather than grepping files: ```bash qmd query "what happened at Christmas" # Semantic search with reranking qmd search "specific phrase" # BM25 keyword search qmd vsearch "conceptual question" # Pure vector similarity ``` Index your personal folder: `qmd index $AGENT_HOME` Vectors + BM25 + reranking finds things even when the wording differs. ## Planning Keep plans in timestamped files in `plans/` at the project root (outside personal memory so other agents can access them). Use `qmd` to search plans. Plans go stale -- if a newer plan exists, do not confuse yourself with an older version. If you notice staleness, update the file to note what it is supersededBy. --- Source attribution: googlarz Original project: https://github.com/googlarz/stapler/blob/3e20f4fc208d129b5c84e78e74b23a8790f1c819/skills/para-memory-files/SKILL.md License: MIT License information: https://opensource.org/license/mit Original upstream instructions; downloaded from Mega AI Hub. ## Upstream license notice MIT License Copyright (c) 2025 Paperclip AI Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions: The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software. THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE. # Mega AI Hub resource metadata Creator / publisher: googlarz Original project: https://github.com/googlarz/stapler/blob/3e20f4fc208d129b5c84e78e74b23a8790f1c819/skills/para-memory-files/SKILL.md Attribution basis: Source repository record Fields of work: Marketing, Product Management, Project & Program Management Roles: Content Marketer, Growth Marketer, Marketing Analyst, Product Manager, Project Manager Specialties: Notion Tools: Qmd Country applicability: Country not specified Classification basis: Source catalog labels Instruction SHA-256: eee767e0093d6378d9c15fb07403e4ebfe409c22092600c481d9b01399c8ce54