毛选.skill — Mao's Cognitive Framework for Strategic Analysis Skill by ara.so — Daily 2026 Skills collection. A Claude Code skill that distills the core mental models from 《毛泽东选集》 (Selected Works of Mao Zedong) into an operational cognitive framework. Not a quote repeater — applies his analytical methods to your actual problems: startup vs. big corp, team conflicts, resource allocation, competitive strategy, career pivots. 7 core mental models · 10 decision heuristics · Full expression DNA Installation
Install via skills CLI
npx skills add leezythu/maoxuan-skill
Or clone directly
git clone https://github.com/leezythu/maoxuan-skill.git After installation, trigger in Claude Code with any of: 毛选 教员 用毛选的方式分析 从毛选的角度 教员怎么看 用毛选框架 What the Skill Does The skill loads SKILL.md into your AI agent's context, giving it: 7 Mental Models — operational frameworks extracted from core writings 10 Decision Heuristics — concrete rules for ambiguous situations Expression DNA — the rhetorical style (direct address, historical analogy, dialectical structure) Honest Boundaries — what it can and cannot do The agent does NOT roleplay as Mao. It uses his analytical frameworks to examine your problem. Repository Structure maoxuan-skill/ ├── SKILL.md # Core skill file loaded by agent ├── README.md ├── LICENSE # MIT └── references/ └── research/ ├── 01-core-writings.md # Distilled core texts ├── 02-strategic-thinking.md # Strategic thinking analysis ├── 03-expression-dna.md # Expression style DNA ├── 04-external-views.md # External perspectives ├── 05-decisions.md # Key decision analysis └── 06-timeline.md # Timeline reference The 7 Core Mental Models 1. 矛盾分析法 — Contradiction Analysis Source: 《矛盾论》 (On Contradiction) Find the principal contradiction among all contradictions. Resolving it moves everything else. Problem has N issues → identify the ONE that, if resolved, unlocks the others Don't fight symptoms → fight the root contradiction Principal aspect vs. secondary aspect within each contradiction Application pattern: User problem → List all tensions/conflicts → Identify principal contradiction (usually ≠ stated problem) → Focus all resources on principal contradiction → Secondary contradictions resolve or become manageable 2. 实践认识循环 — Practice-Cognition Loop Source: 《实践论》 (On Practice) 没有调查就没有发言权 No investigation, no right to speak. Loop: Practice → Perception → Conception → Practice (verify) → repeat Application pattern: Don't theorize without data → go investigate first Hypothesis → smallest possible test → update model → next test Never skip the "go talk to real users/customers" step 3. 持久战略 — Protracted War Strategy Source: 《论持久战》 (On Protracted War) Three phases when you're the weaker party: Phase 1: Strategic defensive — preserve strength, avoid decisive battles you'll lose Phase 2: Strategic stalemate — attrit the enemy, build your base Phase 3: Strategic offensive — counterattack from position of strength Application pattern: Early startup: don't fight big corp head-on (Phase 1) Growing startup: find your niche, deepen it, build defensible moat (Phase 2) Established player: expand from stronghold (Phase 3) 4. 农村包围城市 — Rural Encirclement of Cities Source: 《星星之火，可以燎原》 (A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire) Don't attack the enemy's strongest point Find underserved edges the dominant player ignores Build an unassailable base there Expand concentrically until you can challenge the center Application pattern: Big corp's weakness: can't focus deeply on any single niche Your advantage: you can go 10x deeper in ONE narrow segment Win that segment completely → expand to adjacent segment → repeat 5. 统一战线 — United Front Source: 《中国社会各阶级的分析》 把朋友搞得多多的，把敌人搞得少少的 Maximize allies, minimize enemies. Distinguish: Who is the real enemy? Who is a potential ally even if uncomfortable? Don't make enemies unnecessarily Isolate the primary enemy by uniting everyone else Application pattern: Team conflict → reframe: shared enemy = market/competition → both factions are allies against the real enemy → 团结—批评—团结 (Unity → Criticism → Unity) 6. 群众路线 — Mass Line Source: 《关于领导方法的若干问题》 从群众中来，到群众中去 From the masses, to the masses. Gather scattered ideas from users/team Synthesize into coherent direction Return to users/team as clear guidance Verify in practice → iterate Application pattern: Product decisions: talk to 20 users → find patterns → build → ship → repeat Management: don't dictate → listen → synthesize → align → execute 7. 纸老虎论 — Paper Tiger Theory 战略上藐视敌人，战术上重视敌人 Strategically: the enemy is a paper tiger (don't be paralyzed by their size) Tactically: take them seriously in every specific engagement Big corp LOOKS invincible → actually has massive structural weaknesses You LOOK tiny → actually have massive agility advantages 10 Decision Heuristics Heuristic When to Apply 没有调查就没有发言权 Before any major decision — go gather data first 抓主要矛盾 When overwhelmed by multiple problems 星星之火，可以燎原 When tempted to scale before the core is solid 一分为二看问题 When analysis seems one-sided 不打无准备之仗 Before launching any initiative 自力更生为主，争取外援为辅 Resource allocation decisions 集中优势兵力，各个歼灭 When to concentrate vs. spread resources 在战略上藐视，在战术上重视 Facing intimidating competition 从群众中来，到群众中去 Product/org decisions lacking user grounding 把朋友搞得多多的，把敌人搞得少少的 Stakeholder and coalition decisions Usage Patterns Pattern 1: Competitive Strategy Analysis Trigger: 毛选 Problem: We're a 10-person startup. Google just shipped a product that does what we do. Framework applied: → 纸老虎论: Google's size = paper tiger. They have 1000 priorities. You have 1. → 农村包围城市: Don't fight Google's product. Find the vertical they'll never care about. Go 10x deeper there. → 持久战略 Phase 1: Don't go head-to-head. Survive, build base. → 矛盾分析: Principal contradiction = you haven't found your unassailable niche yet. That's the ONE thing to solve. Pattern 2: Team Conflict Resolution Trigger: 教员怎么看 Problem: Two tech leads hate each other. Team is split. Shipping has stopped. Framework applied: → 矛盾分析: Principal contradiction = missed deadlines/market window. Their conflict = secondary contradiction. → 统一战线: They are NOT enemies of each other. Market is the enemy. Unite them against the real enemy. → 团结—批评—团结: Step 1: Establish shared goal (the "抗日" = shipping Q3) Step 2: Honest criticism session — facts on the table Step 3: Return to unity around shared goal Pattern 3: Career/Pivot Decisions Trigger: 用毛选的方式分析 Problem: Backend engineer, 5 years experience, wants to enter AI but feels outgunned. Framework applied: → 纸老虎论: "AI market is saturated" = paper tiger. Most people are doing surface-level work. → 根据地思维: Your backend experience IS your base. AI engineers don't have it. → 实践认识循环: Before strategizing — investigate. What are the actual bottlenecks to AI adoption in your industry? (hint: usually not the model) → 农村包围城市: Don't compete on algorithms. Own the "AI + [your industry]" niche. Pattern 4: Resource Allocation Trigger: 毛选 Problem: 3 possible product directions, resources for 1. Framework applied: → 矛盾分析: Which direction resolves the PRINCIPAL contradiction (survival/growth)? → 集中优势兵力: Don't spread. Concentrate everything on ONE. → 持久战略: Which direction gives you a defensible base to expand from later? → 没有调查就没有发言权: Have you actually talked to users in each direction? Do that first. Expression Style (What the Skill Sounds Like) The framework uses a distinctive rhetorical structure: 1. Direct address: "同志" / "你这个问题..." 2. Historical grounding: brief concrete analogy (not lecture) 3. Problem reframe: "你以为主要矛盾是X，其实是Y" 4. Framework application: named model + your specific situation 5. Concrete next action: specific, not vague 6. Closing formulation: aphorism tied to the analysis It does NOT: Lecture on history at length Repeat quotes without applying them Give generic motivational content Avoid naming the hard thing Skill Compatibility Agent Compatible Claude Code ✅ Primary target Cursor ✅ via SKILL.md in context Codex ✅ skills.sh ✅
Verify skill is loaded
npx skills list
Should show: maoxuan-skill-cognitive-framework
Honest Boundaries What the skill can do: Apply contradiction analysis to decompose complex problems Use protracted war / rural encirclement for competitive strategy Apply mass line thinking to product and org decisions Use united front logic for stakeholder/coalition mapping Provide dialectical (一分为二) analysis that avoids one-sidedness What it cannot do: Limitation Reason Replace actual domain expertise Framework ≠ knowledge of your specific market Generate specific execution plans Provides analytical structure, not implementation Poetry / literary creation Style is extractable, literary genius is not Historical evaluation Skill focuses on methodology, not historical judgment Guarantee outcomes Analysis improves decisions, doesn't determine results Why This Framework for Technical/Startup Problems Most business frameworks assume you have resources. This one was built for the opposite: Framework Starting conditions Jobs/Apple Talent + capital + distribution Musk/Tesla Capital + regulatory navigation Munger/Berkshire Information asymmetry + long time horizon 毛选 Extreme resource disadvantage vs. vastly stronger opponent If you're a small team facing a large competitor, a junior person navigating a large org, or a founder with limited runway — this framework was literally built for your situation. Contributing git clone https://github.com/leezythu/maoxuan-skill.git cd maoxuan-skill
Core skill file
vim SKILL.md
Research references
vim references/research/01-core-writings.md PRs welcome for: additional mental model documentation, new application patterns, corrections to framework distillation. License MIT — use freely, modify freely, build on it freely. 语录告诉你他说过什么。毛选.skill 帮你用他的方式看你的问题。 星星之火，可以燎原。