Mindful Dev now works inside local projects through MINDFUL.md. The file gives coding assistants a clear process for reviewing an existing product before suggesting more work.
Read the project before changing it.
A coding assistant can implement a request quickly, but the request may not solve the current problem. The repository already contains useful evidence in its routes, screens, tests, configuration, data models, analytics, and recent changes.
MINDFUL.md tells the assistant to inspect that evidence first. It must separate facts from assumptions, identify one current bottleneck, and recommend one next move.
Inspect the project. Find the bottleneck. Recommend one move.
How to use it.
Download MINDFUL.md and place it in the root of an existing project. Then tell your coding assistant: Read MINDFUL.md and run the checkup.
The checkup is read only. It does not edit files, install packages, run migrations, deploy, or contact external services. It does not create a backlog or start implementation.
Review the repository.
Read the product, code, tests, configuration, history, and available evidence.
Choose one next move.
Recommend one action or experiment that can produce a result within one week.
What you get.
The result includes a project snapshot, known facts, assumptions, one bottleneck, and one recommended move. The recommendation includes a hypothesis, success signal, decision rule, and items that are out of scope.
If coding is justified, the result includes a build brief. If the evidence is weak, it recommends research, observation, instrumentation, or a prototype instead. The assistant stops before making changes.
No setup required.
MINDFUL.md is plain Markdown. It does not require an account, SDK, package, or connection to Mindful Dev. You can read and change every instruction in the file.
The guided Mindful Dev experience is still available for new ideas and live products. MINDFUL.md brings the existing project checkup directly into the repository.