4To1 Planner - AI Planning Coach

# 4To1 Planner — AI Planning Coach

> "From Vision to Action: 4to1"

An AI-native planning coach that turns your 4-year vision into today's action — through conversation, not templates.

The 4To1 Method™

A 4-layer strategic planning system. Each layer bridges the gap between vision and execution:

``` 4 YEARS → Strategic Vision (Where am I going?) 3 MONTHS → Project Milestones (Quarterly Gantt Log) 2 WEEKS → Action Execution (1 Day in a Week sprints) 1 DAY → Daily Tasks (Today's to-do list) ```

• Plus two elimination layers:
• Not-To-Do Projects: Things you explicitly say NO to
• Time Wasters: Daily habits you're eliminating

Core principle: Every daily task connects to a 2-week sprint, which connects to a 3-month milestone, which connects to your 4-year vision. Nothing floats.

Quick Start

• User says any of these → this skill activates:
• "Help me set up a planning system"
• "I want to plan my next 4 years"
• "Do my weekly review"
• "What should I focus on today?"
• "Set up 4to1 planner"

Setup: Connect Your Backend

The planner needs somewhere to store plans. Ask the user which they prefer:

Option 1: Notion (Recommended)

```bash # 1. Create a Notion integration at https://www.notion.so/my-integrations # 2. Copy the API key (starts with ntn_) # 3. Store it: mkdir -p ~/.config/4to1 echo "BACKEND=notion" > ~/.config/4to1/config echo "NOTION_API_KEY=ntn_your_key_here" >> ~/.config/4to1/config ```

Share a parent page with the integration in Notion (click ··· → Connections → select your integration).

Create the planning workspace in Notion:

```bash NOTION_KEY=$(grep NOTION_API_KEY ~/.config/4to1/config | cut -d= -f2) PARENT_PAGE=$(grep NOTION_PARENT_PAGE ~/.config/4to1/config | cut -d= -f2)

# Create the 4To1 Planning Hub page curl -s -X POST "https://api.notion.com/v1/pages" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $NOTION_KEY" \ -H "Notion-Version: 2025-09-03" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d "{ \"parent\": {\"page_id\": \"$PARENT_PAGE\"}, \"properties\": {\"title\": {\"title\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"🎯 4To1 Planning Hub\"}}]}}, \"children\": [ {\"type\": \"heading_1\", \"heading_1\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"🔭 4-Year Vision\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"paragraph\", \"paragraph\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"Your strategic direction. Updated annually.\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"heading_1\", \"heading_1\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"📊 3-Month Milestones\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"paragraph\", \"paragraph\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"Quarterly Gantt Log — project milestones for this quarter.\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"heading_1\", \"heading_1\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"🏃 2-Week Sprint\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"paragraph\", \"paragraph\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"1 Day in a Week — action execution in 2-week cycles.\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"heading_1\", \"heading_1\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"🚫 Not-To-Do List\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"paragraph\", \"paragraph\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"Projects and commitments you are explicitly saying NO to.\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"heading_1\", \"heading_1\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"⏰ Time Wasters\"}}]}}, {\"type\": \"paragraph\", \"paragraph\": {\"rich_text\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"Daily habits you are eliminating.\"}}]}} ] }"

# Create Projects database (tracks items across all 4 layers) curl -s -X POST "https://api.notion.com/v1/databases" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $NOTION_KEY" \ -H "Notion-Version: 2025-09-03" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d "{ \"parent\": {\"page_id\": \"$PARENT_PAGE\"}, \"title\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"📋 4To1 Projects\"}}], \"properties\": { \"Name\": {\"title\": {}}, \"Status\": {\"select\": {\"options\": [ {\"name\": \"Active\", \"color\": \"green\"}, {\"name\": \"Planned\", \"color\": \"blue\"}, {\"name\": \"On Hold\", \"color\": \"yellow\"}, {\"name\": \"Done\", \"color\": \"gray\"}, {\"name\": \"Not-To-Do\", \"color\": \"red\"} ]}}, \"Layer\": {\"select\": {\"options\": [ {\"name\": \"4-Year Vision\", \"color\": \"blue\"}, {\"name\": \"3-Month Milestone\", \"color\": \"green\"}, {\"name\": \"2-Week Sprint\", \"color\": \"orange\"}, {\"name\": \"1-Day Task\", \"color\": \"red\"} ]}}, \"Priority\": {\"select\": {\"options\": [ {\"name\": \"Primary\", \"color\": \"red\"}, {\"name\": \"Secondary\", \"color\": \"orange\"}, {\"name\": \"Nice-to-have\", \"color\": \"gray\"} ]}}, \"Parent Project\": {\"rich_text\": {}}, \"Start Date\": {\"date\": {}}, \"End Date\": {\"date\": {}}, \"Progress\": {\"number\": {\"format\": \"percent\"}}, \"Notes\": {\"rich_text\": {}} } }"

# Create Sprint Log database (2-week tracking cycles) curl -s -X POST "https://api.notion.com/v1/databases" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $NOTION_KEY" \ -H "Notion-Version: 2025-09-03" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d "{ \"parent\": {\"page_id\": \"$PARENT_PAGE\"}, \"title\": [{\"text\": {\"content\": \"📅 Sprint Log\"}}], \"properties\": { \"Sprint\": {\"title\": {}}, \"Focus Areas\": {\"rich_text\": {}}, \"Completed\": {\"number\": {}}, \"Planned\": {\"number\": {}}, \"Completion Rate\": {\"formula\": {\"expression\": \"if(prop(\\\"Planned\\\") > 0, round(prop(\\\"Completed\\\") / prop(\\\"Planned\\\") * 100), 0)\"}}, \"Reflection\": {\"rich_text\": {}}, \"Energy Level\": {\"select\": {\"options\": [ {\"name\": \"🔥 High\", \"color\": \"green\"}, {\"name\": \"😊 Normal\", \"color\": \"blue\"}, {\"name\": \"😴 Low\", \"color\": \"yellow\"}, {\"name\": \"💀 Burnt Out\", \"color\": \"red\"} ]}} } }" ```

Option 2: Todoist

```bash # 1. Get API token from https://app.todoist.com/app/settings/integrations/developer echo "BACKEND=todoist" > ~/.config/4to1/config echo "TODOIST_API_KEY=your_token_here" >> ~/.config/4to1/config ```

Create the 4To1 structure:

```bash TODOIST_KEY=$(grep TODOIST_API_KEY ~/.config/4to1/config | cut -d= -f2)

for project in "🔭 4-Year Vision" "📊 3-Month Milestones" "🏃 2-Week Sprint" "✅ Daily Tasks" "🚫 Not-To-Do"; do curl -s -X POST "https://api.todoist.com/rest/v2/projects" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $TODOIST_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d "{\"name\": \"$project\"}" done ```

Option 3: Google Calendar + Tasks

```bash echo "BACKEND=gcal" > ~/.config/4to1/config # Requires Google OAuth — run the setup script: python3 {baseDir}/scripts/gcal_setup.py ```

Option 4: Local Markdown (No account needed)

```bash echo "BACKEND=local" > ~/.config/4to1/config echo "LOCAL_DIR=~/4to1-plans" >> ~/.config/4to1/config mkdir -p ~/4to1-plans/{vision,milestones,sprints,daily,not-to-do} ```

Core Commands

1. Onboarding — "Set up my planning system"

Guide the user through this conversation:

Step 1: Choose backend (see Setup above)

Step 2: 4-Year Vision (5-10 min conversation)

1. Ask one at a time, conversationally:
2. "If you could be anywhere in 4 years — career, life, skills — what does that look like?"
3. "What are the 2-3 biggest areas you want to transform?" (career, health, relationships, skills, finances)
4. "For each area, what does SUCCESS look like in 4 years? Be specific."
5. "What are you willing to give up to get there?" → seeds the Not-To-Do list
6. "Any daily habits stealing your time?" → seeds the Time Wasters list

• After the conversation, create:
• 4-Year Vision document with their answers (Layer: 4-Year Vision)
• 2-5 vision areas with concrete success criteria
• Initial Not-To-Do list + Time Wasters list

1. Step 3: 3-Month Milestones (5 min)
2. "Of your vision areas, which 1-2 need the most progress in the next 3 months?"
3. "What specific milestones would mean real progress?"
4. "Break each into measurable deliverables."

Create items with Layer: 3-Month Milestone, linked to vision areas.

1. Step 4: 2-Week Sprint (3 min)
2. "For your quarterly milestones, what can you accomplish in the next 2 weeks?"
3. "Pick 2 Primary projects and up to 5 Secondary projects."
4. "What does 'done' look like for each?"

Create items with Layer: 2-Week Sprint.

1. Step 5: Today (1 min)
2. "What are the 3 most important tasks for today?"
3. "Which sprint project does each serve?"

Write everything to the chosen backend.

2. Weekly Review — "Do my weekly review"

Run every Sunday evening or Monday morning. Read {baseDir}/scripts/weekly_review.md for the full template.

Summary: ``` READ: This week's tasks + completion status + project progress + Not-To-Do list ASK: How did this week go? → Wins? → Blockers? → Energy level? → Did you spend time on Not-To-Do items? → Next week's top 3? WRITE: Sprint log entry + next week's tasks + updated progress ```

Keep it under 10 minutes. Be a coach, not a form.

3. Bi-Weekly Sprint Review — Every 2 weeks

``` READ: Current 2-week sprint tasks and progress REVIEW: What got done? What carries over? Any sprint goal changes? PLAN: Next 2-week sprint — new primary/secondary projects CHECK: Are sprints still aligned with 3-month milestones? ```

4. Quarterly Review — End of each quarter

``` READ: All projects and sprint logs for the quarter REPORT: Projects completed/stalled/abandoned, completion trend, top win, biggest blocker ASK: Which projects continue? Which get cut? New projects? Update Not-To-Do? WRITE: Quarterly report + next quarter's milestones ```

5. Daily Check-in — "What should I focus on today?"

``` READ: Current sprint tasks + project priorities RESPOND: "Based on your 2-week sprint, today's focus: 1. [Task] → serves [3-month milestone] 2. [Task] → serves [milestone] 3. [Task]

⚠️ [Project X] hasn't had progress in a week. 🚫 Not-To-Do reminder: You said NO to [thing]." ```

6. Quick Add — "Add [task] to my plan"

Parse the task. Ask which project/sprint it serves if unclear. Add to backend with correct layer linkage.

7. Progress Check — "How am I doing?"

``` READ: All data SHOW: 🔭 4-Year Vision: [areas and direction] 📊 Q[X] Milestones: [X/Y complete] 🏃 Current Sprint: [X/Y tasks done, Z% rate] 📈 Sprint streak: X consecutive reviews 🚫 Not-To-Do violations: [any this week?] ```

Notion API Reference

```bash NOTION_KEY=$(grep NOTION_API_KEY ~/.config/4to1/config | cut -d= -f2)

# Search planning pages curl -s -X POST "https://api.notion.com/v1/search" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $NOTION_KEY" \ -H "Notion-Version: 2025-09-03" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"query": "4To1"}'

# Query projects by layer curl -s -X POST "https://api.notion.com/v1/databases/{db_id}/query" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $NOTION_KEY" \ -H "Notion-Version: 2025-09-03" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"filter": {"and": [ {"property": "Status", "select": {"equals": "Active"}}, {"property": "Layer", "select": {"equals": "2-Week Sprint"}} ]}}'

# Update progress curl -s -X PATCH "https://api.notion.com/v1/pages/{page_id}" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $NOTION_KEY" \ -H "Notion-Version: 2025-09-03" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"properties": {"Progress": {"number": 0.75}, "Status": {"select": {"name": "Active"}}}}'

# Create sprint log entry curl -s -X POST "https://api.notion.com/v1/pages" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $NOTION_KEY" \ -H "Notion-Version: 2025-09-03" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "parent": {"database_id": "{sprint_log_db_id}"}, "properties": { "Sprint": {"title": [{"text": {"content": "2026-W07 Sprint Review"}}]}, "Completed": {"number": 8}, "Planned": {"number": 10}, "Reflection": {"rich_text": [{"text": {"content": "Good sprint. Hit main milestones."}}]}, "Energy Level": {"select": {"name": "😊 Normal"}} } }' ```

Todoist API Reference

```bash TODOIST_KEY=$(grep TODOIST_API_KEY ~/.config/4to1/config | cut -d= -f2)

# Get all projects curl -s "https://api.todoist.com/rest/v2/projects" -H "Authorization: Bearer $TODOIST_KEY"

# Get active tasks in a project curl -s "https://api.todoist.com/rest/v2/tasks?project_id={id}" -H "Authorization: Bearer $TODOIST_KEY"

# Create task linked to sprint curl -s -X POST "https://api.todoist.com/rest/v2/tasks" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $TODOIST_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"content": "Task name", "project_id": "xxx", "priority": 4, "due_string": "next monday", "description": "Sprint: 2-Week Sprint | Milestone: Q1 Goal"}'

# Complete task curl -s -X POST "https://api.todoist.com/rest/v2/tasks/{id}/close" -H "Authorization: Bearer $TODOIST_KEY" ```

Local Markdown Backend

``` ~/4to1-plans/ ├── vision.md # 4-year vision document ├── not-to-do.md # Not-To-Do projects + Time Wasters ├── milestones/ │ └── 2026-Q1.md # 3-month milestone plan ├── sprints/ │ ├── 2026-W07.md # 2-week sprint plan │ └── 2026-W09.md ├── daily/ │ └── 2026-02-10.md # Daily task list └── reviews/ ├── sprint-2026-W07.md # Sprint review log └── quarterly-2026-Q1.md ```

Use YAML frontmatter for structured data:

• ```markdown
• ---
• project: Launch MVP
• layer: 3-month-milestone
• status: active
• priority: primary
• progress: 45
• start: 2026-01-01
• end: 2026-03-31
• parent_vision: "Build a profitable SaaS"
• ---
• # Launch MVP
• ## Tasks (2-week sprint)
• [x] Define feature scope
• [x] Build prototype
• [ ] User testing round 1
• [ ] Iterate on feedback
• ```

Automation (Heartbeat/Cron)

For OpenClaw users with heartbeats or cron:

Weekly review reminder (Sunday 8pm): ``` "Run 4to1 weekly review: read sprint progress, generate summary, ask for next week's priorities" ```

Daily focus (weekdays 8am): ``` "Check 4to1 plan, suggest today's top 3 focus tasks based on current 2-week sprint" ```

Stall detection (every 3 days): ``` "Check if any active 4to1 sprint project hasn't been updated in 1+ week. Alert if stalled." ```

Coach Principles

1. Respect the 4-3-2-1 hierarchy — every task connects up through sprint → milestone → vision
2. Protect the Not-To-Do list — if user adds something conflicting, remind them why they said no
3. Never fabricate progress — only report what's actually tracked
4. Keep it lightweight — weekly review = 5-10 min, daily check-in = 1 min
5. Be encouraging but honest — celebrate wins, flag stalls kindly
6. Think in 2-week cycles — the sprint is the core execution rhythm

Learn More

• Website: https://4to1planner.com
• Free starter kit: https://4to1planner.com/free-download.html
• Templates: https://4to1planner.com/shop.html
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@markzhou5213
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/xiucat