Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Long-Term Compounding Advisor agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The Long-Term Compounding Advisor is an agent skill based on ideas from Naval Ravikant's book, written in Chinese. It helps an AI agent reason about whether to commit to a partner, project or relationship over the long term, and how to build trust and reputation. This guide explains what the skill does, how to install it, how to trigger it, and where it should not be used.
Long-Term Compounding Advisorkangarooking/cangjie-skill · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the long-term-compounding ZIP from the item page.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Extract it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or a project's .claude/skills/ folder.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. Go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the ZIP.
- 4Describe a long-term decision. Ask about a partner, client, deal or relationship in plain language.
- 5Run the lifetime test. Ask whether you could imagine working with this person for a lifetime.
- 6Check for negative signals. Ask the agent to look for cynical, pessimistic or short-term habits.
- 7Decide and act. Use the reasoning as input, and handle urgent or illegal situations separately.
What the skill makes the agent do
The skill applies a 'compounding' lens to long-term decisions. It asks whether a decision will grow in value over about ten years, whether you could imagine working with the person for a lifetime, and whether the other party shows cynical, pessimistic or short-term habits.
It is advice-style reasoning, not a tool that takes actions. It does not run scripts or make network calls, so the agent answers by reasoning through your situation.
- Checks whether a decision compounds over roughly ten years
- Applies a 'could I work with this person for a lifetime' test
- Looks for negative signals such as cynicism, pessimism or short-term thinking
- Suggests making a reputation deposit: a good deed the other party will remember
How to install the skill
The skill is distributed as a ZIP file from the item page. You can install it in one of two ways, depending on how you use your agent.
For Claude Code, unzip the download into your personal skills folder ~/.claude/skills/ or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder. For the Claude apps, upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Download the long-term-compounding ZIP from the item page
- Unzip it so the long-term-compounding folder contains SKILL.md
- Personal install: place it in ~/.claude/skills/
- Project install: place it in your project's .claude/skills/
- Claude apps: upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills
~/.claude/skills/long-term-compounding/SKILL.mdHow to trigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need a special command. The skill is meant to activate when you ask about long-term commitment, partners, deals or reputation. The skill's description lists trigger words including 长期, 复利, 声誉, 合作, 信任, compounding, long-term and trust.
Phrase your request as a real decision you face. The more concrete the situation, the more useful the reasoning.
- Should I commit long-term to this project or relationship?
- Can this person be trusted as a long-term partner?
- This deal pays fast but could hurt my reputation. Should I take it?
- How do I build trust and reputation over time?
- Is this partner someone I could work with for five or ten years?
Examples of what a good answer covers
A useful answer walks through the compounding test, the 'lifetime' test and the negative-signal check, then gives a clear recommendation. The source describes the four situations the skill is built for: evaluating a partner or client, weighing a quick deal against reputation, building reputation as a compounding asset, and deciding whether a relationship deserves long-term investment.
The skill's own test prompts included a check that a short-term deal was flagged as a fast-money trade that could damage reputation, and that a personal friendship complaint was routed to a different skill rather than this one.
- Compounding test: will this grow in value over about ten years?
- Lifetime test: could I imagine working with this person for a lifetime? If not, the source says not to start.
- Negative-signal check: is the other party cynical, pessimistic or short-term?
- Reputation deposit: do one good thing the other party will remember, without keeping score
What the skill needs and what it does not do
The item lists no required dependencies. It does not run scripts and does not use the network. Its files are SKILL.md, test-prompts.json and test-results.md.
The skill is a reasoning framework. It cannot check a person's background, verify a contract or look up a company. Treat its output as structured thinking to support your own judgement.
- Requires: nothing listed
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
- Files: SKILL.md, test-prompts.json, test-results.md
- Licence: MIT
Safety notes and when not to use it
The skill itself says not to use long-term reasoning in some situations. For emergencies or urgent cash-flow problems, decide immediately. If a situation involves fraud or illegal activity, stop the losses first rather than relying on long-term patience.
The source also notes limits: the book assumes stable, predictable environments, so fast-changing or heavily regulated industries may not fit. The skill's reasoning rests on a strong claim that all benefits come from compounding, which does not account for necessary cut-losses.
- Do not use for emergencies or urgent cash-flow problems
- Do not use for fraud or illegal activity: stop losses first
- Be cautious in fast-changing or heavily regulated industries
- Do not treat it as a substitute for legal or financial advice
Tips for getting better results
Give the agent specific facts: how long you have known the person, what the deal involves, and what you would be giving up. Vague questions produce vague reasoning.
Ask the agent to apply each test separately so you can see which one drives the answer.
- Name the person, project or deal and the time horizon you care about
- Mention any short-term pressure, since the skill treats urgent decisions differently
- Ask for the negative-signal check explicitly if you are unsure about someone's habits
What people use it for
- Deciding whether to take on a long-term business partner, client or hire
- Weighing a quick, lucrative deal against your professional reputation
- Judging whether a relationship is worth long-term investment
- Planning how to build trust and reputation over time
Frequently asked questions
How do I install the long-term compounding agent skill?
Download the ZIP from the item page and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or a project's .claude/skills/ folder. In the Claude apps, you can instead upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
Does the long-term-compounding skill require anything else?
The item lists no required dependencies. It does not run scripts and does not use the network, so it works as reasoning guidance inside your agent.
Is the long-term compounding skill free?
The item is released under the MIT licence. The source does not mention pricing, so check the item page for any details beyond the licence.
What kinds of questions trigger this skill?
Questions about long-term commitment, choosing partners, deal trade-offs or building reputation. Trigger words include 长期, 复利, 声誉, 合作, 信任, compounding, long-term and trust.
When should I not use this skill?
Do not use it for emergencies, urgent cash-flow problems, or situations involving fraud or illegal activity. The skill says to decide immediately or stop losses first in those cases.
How is it different from the game-selection skill?
This skill focuses on time horizon, meaning long-term versus short-term. The game-selection skill focuses on game structure, such as zero-sum, positive-sum or single-player games.
New agent skills, repos and AI tools — every week
The best new skills and open-source projects, the fastest-growing repos, and one free prompt. Five minutes to read. Unsubscribe anytime.
Our verdict
This skill suits people who want a structured way to think about long-term partners, clients, deals and reputation. It is not suited to emergencies, urgent cash-flow decisions, fraud, or fast-changing or heavily regulated industries, where you should choose a different approach.
Download the skill