# rite-spec: anti-patterns

Load this when standing a non-trivial decision in `$rite-spec`, or when the
agent feels reluctance toward investigation depth, gap-closing, or
placement decisions.

Pack-wide rationalizations + red flags: see [standards/anti-patterns.md](../../devrites-lib/reference/standards/anti-patterns.md).

## Phase-specific rationalizations

| Excuse | Rebuttal |
|---|---|
| "User said *just make it work*: no spec needed." | Vague asks are exactly where `$rite-spec` earns its keep; load `devrites-interview` and ask one question at a time. |
| "I already understand the request." | Then writing the placement + acceptance criteria takes minutes and saves drift later. Investigation isn't for *you*, it's for `$rite-define`. |
| "Too small for a spec." | If it's big enough for `$rite-build`, it's big enough for one paragraph of WHAT/WHY + measurable acceptance. |
| "No design refs were attached, so skip references." | Skip the *gathering*, not the *acknowledgement*. Note "no references provided" in the spec: silence is ambiguous. |
| "I can resolve gaps as I build." | Drift discovered at slice 3 costs more than 5 questions answered now. |
| "I'm confident of the answer, so I'll just decide this myself." | Confidence changes the *cost* of the question, not its *owner*. A material decision (scope · placement · data model · UX · security · migration · acceptance) is put to the human as a ranked option set: near-certainty just makes it a one-pick confirm, never a silent decision. |
| "Presenting options for every gap is over-asking." | Over-asking is many questions at once or asking what the codebase answers. One ranked option set per *material* gap, recommended-first, is the opposite: it hands the human the decision cheaply. Reversible low-impact details you still auto-decide and log. |

## Red Flags

- About to start writing `spec.md` without a Placement & integration section.
- Spec has no measurable acceptance criteria: "works as expected" is not measurable.
- A `[NEEDS CLARIFICATION]` marker remains on a blocking item.
- Design references were attached but never opened, saved, or indexed in `references.md`.
- The investigation didn't read the module/component that currently owns this area.