Step 9: Set Up Project Management

This ninth step builds upon our understanding of core value proposition, market landscape, technology choices, whole-person personas, meaningful features, human-centered MVP requirements, holistic system architecture, and development methodology to create project management infrastructure that accelerates neuroplastic growth and polymathic development for the next 91 steps in this 100-step roadmap. As we continue through the first Phase of our seven Phases, we recognize that how we organize our collective work directly shapes our cognitive development and professional evolution.

Plans necessarily must be changed and if not, fixed plans means our development work has taught us nothing.

This approach to project management transcends conventional task-tracking to become a high-agency learning acceleration system—creating environments where developers transform from passive spectators to active creators of their own cognitive growth. By implementing tools and practices that support autodidactic exploration while maintaining meaningful coordination, we establish infrastructure that nurtures both technical excellence and continuous skill expansion across multiple dimensions.

Phase 1: Conceptualization and Planning.

Subject to Replanning After Phase 1

Project Management as Neuroplastic Acceleration Infrastructure

Project management must evolve beyond mere coordination mechanisms to become active catalysts for cognitive development. Our tooling and processes should consciously support the transformation from passive consumption to active creation, from specialized limitation to polymathic capability, and from structured dependence to autodidactic agency.

Tool Selection as Neural Pathway Formation

The project management tools we choose directly shape how contributors think, learn, and evolve—creating either accelerated neuroplastic growth or stagnant routine.

High-Agency Tool Evaluation Framework

  • Autodidactic Exploration Support: Assessing how different tools encourage self-directed learning vs. prescribed processes
  • Mental Model Flexibility: Evaluating how platforms enable adaptation to emerging understanding rather than rigid workflows
  • Polymathic Visibility Capability: Analyzing how tools support cross-domain connections and multi-dimensional thinking
  • Cognitive Overhead Minimization: Measuring the mental energy different platforms require for administrative vs. creative work
  • Connection Formation Acceleration: Assessing how tools facilitate relationship-building that extends beyond transactional coordination

Intelligence Amplification Capabilities

  • Knowledge Synthesis Support: Evaluating how platforms enable integration of insights across work streams and domains
  • Collective Memory Architecture: Assessing capabilities for preserving context and decisions for continuous learning
  • Idea Connection Visualization: Analyzing how tools expose non-obvious relationships between different initiatives
  • Assumption Surfacing Features: Measuring how effectively platforms reveal underlying premises for examination
  • Learning Transfer Acceleration: Evaluating how tools enable applying insights from one domain to others

Guerrilla Marketing Integration

  • Connection Development Tracking: Assessing how tools support building and nurturing professional relationships
  • Value Demonstration Capability: Evaluating features that showcase contributions and capabilities to potential collaborators
  • Opportunity Pattern Recognition: Analyzing how platforms highlight potential value creation possibilities
  • Micro-Reputation Building: Measuring support for incremental credibility development through visible contributions
  • Network Expansion Facilitation: Evaluating how tools enable discovering and engaging with new professional contacts

Self-Sovereign Knowledge Management

  • Personal Data Control: Assessing individual ownership of contribution history and professional insights
  • Portable Intelligence Support: Evaluating how knowledge and connections remain accessible across different contexts
  • Learning Continuity Preservation: Analyzing how tools maintain cognitive development threads across projects
  • Identity Evolution Documentation: Measuring support for tracking growth and transformation over time
  • AI-Augmentation Readiness: Evaluating how platforms allow integration with personal intelligence assistants

Selected DVCS-Centered Ecosystem: GitHub with Jujutsu Evolution Path

After thorough evaluation, we've selected a GitHub-centered ecosystem for immediate implementation, with a clear evolution path toward Jujutsu as our next-generation DVCS approach to support both coordination effectiveness and accelerated neuroplastic growth.

Core Infrastructure: GitHub Projects and Issues

  • Version Control as Thinking History: Leveraging GitHub's commit history as a record of cognitive evolution
  • Knowledge Ownership Preservation: Maintaining clear attribution that supports reputation development
  • Community Connection Architecture: Building on GitHub's social features that enable discovery and collaboration
  • Automation-Augmented Thinking: Utilizing GitHub Actions to handle routine tasks while freeing mental energy for creative work
  • Documentation-Code Integration: Maintaining proximity between explanations and implementations for holistic understanding

Jujutsu Evolution Strategy

  • Git-Compatible Foundation: Beginning with standard Git while designing workflows that anticipate Jujutsu transition
  • Mental Model Advancement: Planning gradual introduction of Jujutsu's more cognitively natural branch management
  • Operational History Preservation: Ensuring all Git history and metadata will cleanly transfer to Jujutsu when adopted
  • Team Capability Development: Creating a learning pathway for the team to develop advanced DVCS understanding
  • Incremental Feature Adoption: Planning staged implementation of Jujutsu's capabilities to prevent cognitive overload

Jujutsu-Enabled Cognitive Advantages

  • Non-Linear History Understanding: Leveraging Jujutsu's improved visualization of complex development patterns
  • Working Memory Extension: Utilizing Jujutsu's superior context management to reduce cognitive load
  • Mental Model-Aligned Workflows: Adopting Jujutsu's more intuitive branch and merge paradigms
  • Cognitive Friction Reduction: Implementing Jujutsu's streamlined commands that better match developer intent
  • Attention Preservation Features: Planning to leverage Jujutsu's simplified approaches that minimize context switching

Cognitive Acceleration Extensions

To transform our DVCS ecosystem from mere repository management to neuroplastic development infrastructure, we'll implement specific extensions and practices:

  • Polymathic Contribution Visualization: Creating dashboards that highlight cross-domain contributions and connections
  • Deliberate Practice Integration: Implementing project structures that encourage stretch challenges for skill development
  • Learning Pathway Documentation: Creating explicit growth trajectories alongside work organization
  • Skill Acquisition Measurement: Implementing metrics that track capability development, not just task completion
  • Connection-Building Automation: Creating systems that suggest potential collaborations based on complementary skills

Workflow Configuration as Neural Pattern Development

The way we structure our project management directly shapes cognitive habits and capabilities across the team.

Issue Architecture as Focused Growth Direction

  • Purpose-Connected Templates: Creating structures that explicitly link tasks to larger learning objectives
  • Cognitive Challenge Labeling: Implementing classification of work by the mental capabilities it develops
  • Cross-Domain Connection Prompts: Designing issue formats that encourage polymathic thinking
  • Reflection Integration Points: Building deliberate learning capture into task completion workflows
  • Growth-Oriented Assignment: Creating distribution approaches that optimize for skill development

Kanban Configuration as Cognitive State Visualization

  • Learning Stage Representation: Designing board columns that reflect knowledge development, not just task status
  • Cognitive Load Management: Implementing work-in-progress limits based on mental energy, not just capacity
  • Skill Development Pipeline: Creating visualization of capabilities being cultivated across the team
  • Knowledge Flow Optimization: Designing board layouts that show how insights move between domains
  • Stagnation Pattern Detection: Implementing visual indicators when growth opportunities are being missed

Automation as Agency Amplification

  • Routine-Elimination Focus: Creating automations that handle administrative tasks to free mental energy for growth
  • Connection-Surfacing Bots: Implementing systems that identify potential collaborations and learning opportunities
  • Personal Growth Tracking: Creating automated documentation of individual skill development over time
  • Resource-Suggestion Systems: Implementing context-aware learning material recommendations
  • Cognitive Pattern Recognition: Creating analytics that identify individual learning styles and preferences

Documentation as Neural Network Enhancement

  • Knowledge Connection Visualization: Creating explicit linking between related concepts and implementations
  • Mental Model Externalization: Implementing approaches for capturing conceptual frameworks, not just implementations
  • Decision Context Preservation: Creating rich documentation of reasoning, not just conclusions
  • Progressive Complexity Paths: Designing documentation with multiple layers of detail for different understanding levels
  • Spaced Repetition Integration: Implementing systematic revisitation of key concepts for knowledge consolidation

Meeting Rhythm as Collective Intelligence Development

Our meeting structure must be designed not merely to coordinate work but to actively accelerate collective learning and polymathic growth.

Daily Synchronization as Neural Pattern Reinforcement

  • Learning-Centered Stand-ups: Transforming daily meetings from status reports to insight sharing
  • Cross-Domain Connection Moments: Creating explicit opportunities to link work across different specialties
  • Obstacle-as-Opportunity Framing: Implementing approaches that reframe challenges as learning catalysts
  • Micro-Teaching Opportunities: Creating brief knowledge-sharing moments within synchronization meetings
  • Pattern Recognition Prompts: Designing questions that help identify recurring themes across different work

Weekly Reflection as Cognitive Consolidation

  • Deliberate Learning Extraction: Creating structured approaches for capturing growth insights
  • Skill Development Acknowledgment: Implementing recognition of capability expansion, not just work completion
  • Mental Model Refinement: Designing processes to explicitly evolve conceptual frameworks based on experience
  • Cross-Pollination Facilitation: Creating intentional sharing across different domains and specialties
  • Growth Vector Identification: Implementing forward-looking skill development planning

Monthly Direction as Neural Architecture Evolution

  • Capability Gap Analysis: Creating assessment of team skill development needs and opportunities
  • Learning Experiment Design: Implementing structured approaches to trying new methods and technologies
  • Knowledge Infrastructure Evaluation: Designing review of how effectively the team captures and shares insights
  • Community Connection Planning: Creating intentional strategies for external learning engagement
  • Growth Trajectory Adjustment: Implementing course correction for individual and collective development

Quarterly Strategy as Cognitive Evolution Guidance

  • Skill Ecosystem Assessment: Creating evaluation of how different capabilities complement each other
  • Learning Investment Planning: Implementing deliberate allocation of resources to growth opportunities
  • Personal-Project Alignment: Designing matching between individual development goals and project needs
  • Polymathic Expansion Vectors: Creating identification of cross-domain growth opportunities
  • Collective Intelligence Enhancement: Implementing strategies for improving how the team learns together

Integration Ecosystem as Knowledge Network

The connections between our project management and other systems create a holistic environment for accelerated learning and growth.

Code-Knowledge Integration

  • Commit-Learning Bidirectional Linking: Creating explicit connections between code changes and skill development
  • Review-as-Teaching Structure: Implementing code review approaches focused on knowledge transfer
  • Implementation-Concept Mapping: Designing clear relationships between code and underlying principles
  • Technical-Domain Knowledge Bridges: Creating connections between implementation and subject matter expertise
  • Progressive Challenge Sequencing: Implementing intentional growth-oriented task assignment

Documentation-Growth Connection

  • Learning Journey Documentation: Creating explicit capture of the path to understanding
  • Knowledge Gap Identification: Implementing systems that highlight areas needing deeper expertise
  • Concept Map Visualization: Designing graphical representation of how ideas connect across domains
  • Question-Insight Tracking: Creating preservation of the journey from confusion to clarity
  • Evergreen Knowledge Management: Implementing approaches for maintaining and evolving understanding over time

Communication-Learning Integration

  • Discussion-Documentation Synthesis: Creating seamless flow from conversations to knowledge base
  • Teaching-Learning Oscillation: Implementing structured approaches to alternate between roles
  • Insight Capture Workflow: Designing processes for identifying and preserving valuable realizations
  • Terminology Evolution Tracking: Creating explicit management of language development
  • Conceptual Debate Preservation: Implementing capture of important intellectual explorations

External Resource Connection

  • Learning Material Integration: Creating seamless connections to books, articles, courses, and other resources
  • Community Connection Management: Implementing tracking of relationships with external knowledge sources
  • Conference-Project Knowledge Transfer: Designing explicit application of external insights to project work
  • Expert Network Cultivation: Creating intentional development of connections to specialized knowledge
  • Industry Trend Integration: Implementing approaches for incorporating emerging practices and concepts

This holistic approach to project management establishes infrastructure that accelerates neuroplastic growth and polymathic development—transforming contributors from passive consumers to high-agency creators with expanding capabilities across multiple domains. Our GitHub-centered ecosystem with a clear Jujutsu evolution path will support both effective coordination and continuous cognitive evolution, creating the foundation for extraordinary individual and collective development throughout our journey.