Goals
Capacity Analysis: What Should Reuben Say No To?
Original: January 21, 2026 Updated: March 1, 2026 Purpose: Help identify what to deprioritize, delegate, or decline
Executive Summary: What Changed
In January, you had 18 active threads and we recommended trimming to 14. Here’s what actually happened:
| Jan Recommendation | What Happened |
|---|---|
| Let go of DeVeaux | Still stalled. Still on the list. No action taken. |
| Transfer King to Josh | Never clarified. Still ambiguous. |
| Pause VFT iOS | ✅ Done. On hold. |
| Pause Health Coach Bot | ✅ Paused — but reactivating (Marily meeting Mar 4) |
| Reduce Crystal Springs | ✅ Removed entirely — never materialized as real partnership |
| Reduce New Schools role | Corrected — Reuben leads. Still in discovery. |
Meanwhile, new threads appeared:
- Tinkery / Gregory Wilson (Flash Lab + Build-a-Bot facilitator training)
- Christine / PLEX / Lake Forest visit (March 30 – April 1)
- LabGPT (rebuilt FeedbackGPT for Cathy)
- MyBook dashboard prototype (Wen — expanded from low-touch to active build)
- DeepLearning.AI Dev Day (April 28-29, travel booked)
- CRM re-engagement campaign (queued but not started)
And big wins closed out:
- Oman Hackathon ✅ Delivered
- Legal 101 Workshop ✅ Delivered
- ISTE partnership meeting ✅ Major milestone (Feb 25)
- Colombia chatbot ✅ Study ran, wrapping up
Net result: You’re at 20 active threads. Up from 18 in January.
The trimming helped, but new work grew faster than old work closed.
Current Portfolio: 20 Active Threads (March 2026)
| # | Project | Role | Time | Momentum | Goal | Change Since Jan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Flash Lab Partnerships | ||||||
| 1 | ISTE Partnership | Lead | HIGH | 🟢 Hot | 2, 3 | ⬆️ Major milestone |
| 2 | Tinkery / Gregory Wilson | Lead | Medium | 🟢 Hot | 2, 3 | 🆕 NEW |
| 3 | Christine / Lake Forest | Lead | Medium | 🟢 Hot | 2, 3 | 🆕 NEW |
| 4 | New Schools (Vanessa) | Lead | Low | 🔴 Cold | 2, 3 | No change |
| 5 | Kelly/Australia | Back burner | Low | 🔴 Cold | 2, 3 | No change |
| 6 | Learning Planet (Anna-Lena) | Advisor | Low | 🟡 Warm | 3 | Running independently |
| Build-a-Bot | ||||||
| 7 | Train-the-Trainer (general) | Lead | Medium | 🟢 Hot | 3 | Active (Gregory, CRM) |
| 8 | ABCs of How We Learn | Lead | Low | 🟡 Warm | 2 | Cathy using actively |
| 9 | Health Coach Bot | Lead | Low → Medium | 🟡 Warm | 2, 3 | Was paused, reactivating |
| Seed Grants | ||||||
| 10 | Fan/Chu - Math Games | Lead | Low | 🟡 Warm | 1 | No change |
| 11 | Forssell/Ramirez - Makery | Lead | Low | 🟡 Warm | 1 | No change |
| 12 | DeVeaux - Dancing | Lead | Zero | 🔴 Stalled | 1 | Still stalled |
| 13 | King - Our Voice | Lead (?) | Low | 🔴 Cold | 1 | Still ambiguous |
| Collaborator Projects | ||||||
| 14 | MyBook (Wen) | Collaborator → Builder | Medium | 🟢 Hot | 1 | ⬆️ Dashboard prototype |
| 15 | HarmonAI | Collaborator | Low | 🟡 Warm | 1 | 3D print side task |
| Research / Technical | ||||||
| 16 | AI Comic Studio (Cathy) | Technical build | Medium | 🟡 Warm | 2 | School testing done |
| 17 | LabGPT (Cathy) | Technical build | Medium | 🟢 Hot | 2 | 🆕 Active — study condition guardrails needed |
| 18 | Colombia (Ana) | Chatbot design | Low | 🟡 Winding down | 2 | Study ran, data export left |
| Tools | ||||||
| 19 | CRAFT / Chinese Room | Collaborator | Medium | 🟡 Warm | 2 | Weekly rhythm continues |
| Events | ||||||
| 20 | DeepLearning.AI Dev Day | Attendee | Low (Apr) | ⏳ Future | 2 | 🆕 NEW |
Not counted (resolved):
Oman Hackathon✅ DeliveredLegal 101 Workshop✅ DeliveredCrystal Springs PD✅ RemovedVFT 360 Camera iOS⚪ On Hold
Analysis Framework
Same three dimensions as January:
| Dimension | High | Medium | Low |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strategic Value | Directly advances GPS goals | Supports goals indirectly | Tangential |
| Replaceability | Only you | Could delegate | Anyone |
| Momentum | 🟢 Hot — needs attention now | 🟡 Warm — in progress | 🔴 Cold — stalled |
Project-by-Project Assessment
✅ KEEP — Core Q1.5 Priorities
These are high-value, high-momentum, and directly tied to your goals. Protect this time.
| Project | Why Keep | Time Demand |
|---|---|---|
| ISTE Partnership | Biggest strategic play. Partnership scoping complete. Next: formalize with OTL, Activation Stage concept, due diligence. | HIGH — lots of follow-ups |
| Tinkery / Gregory | Active scaling proof point. Flash Lab March 30 + Build-a-Bot facilitator training. Tangible Goal 3 deliverable. | Medium — March push |
| Christine / Lake Forest | March 30 – April 1 campus visit. PLEX rebranding creates new partnership surface area. | Medium — prep + travel |
| Build-a-Bot Scaling | Core to Goal 3. Gregory training, CRM re-engagement, Andy Hock follow-up. | Medium — steady |
| AI Comic Studio | Active research. School testing done. Cathy relationship is high-value. | Medium — maintenance |
| CRAFT / Chinese Room | Victor Lee relationship. Weekly rhythm. Low disruption to maintain. | Medium — weekly |
🟡 KEEP BUT MONITOR — Don’t Let These Expand
| Project | Current State | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| MyBook (Wen) | Joe leads overall, but Reuben is doing real build work (dashboard prototype, survey, Firebase). This has grown from “collaborator” to “builder.” | ⚠️ Scope creep. Wen keeps adding requirements. Watch hours. |
| ABCs bots | Cathy using them for oncology faculty. Feature work done (Feb 11-12). Maintenance mode. | Low risk if you resist feature requests. |
| Health Coach Bot | Marily meeting Mar 4 (rescheduled). Prototype exists. Question: does this become active build work, or stay in advisory mode? | ⚠️ Decide at Mar 4 meeting: advisor or builder? |
| LabGPT | More active than expected. Cathy is pilot testing two study conditions (Critic vs. Co-designer) and found condition bleed — needs system prompt guardrails built. Active engineering work for the next month. | ⚠️ Scoped: build condition prompts + per-turn reinforcement. Don’t let it expand beyond what the study needs. |
| Colombia (Ana) | Study ran successfully. Just needs data export, then this is done. | ✅ Export data and close. |
🔴 STILL UNRESOLVED — January’s Recommendations Stand
| Project | Jan Recommendation | March Status | Updated Recommendation |
|---|---|---|---|
| DeVeaux - Dancing | Send “door is open” email and let go | Still stalled. No contact since original analysis. | Just remove it. It’s been 4+ months. Don’t even send the email — Cyan knows how to find you. Mark as “On Hold - Inactive” and stop tracking. |
| King - Our Voice | Clarify with Josh | Still unclear. Josh met Ankita in Dec, nothing since. | Ask Josh one more time at next 1:1. If he doesn’t claim it, mark “On Hold” and stop checking on it. The seed grant period will determine the timeline, not you. |
⚪ APPROPRIATELY LOW-TOUCH — Keep As-Is
| Project | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fan/Chu - Math Games | Low-touch | Check in monthly. ✅ |
| Forssell/Ramirez - Makery | Low-touch | Prototype works. They’re scoping. ✅ |
| HarmonAI | Joe leads | 3D print adapter is a fun side task, not a commitment. ✅ |
| Learning Planet (Anna-Lena) | Running independently | She’s delivering without you. Peak [MULTIPLIER]. ✅ |
| Kelly/Australia | Back burner | Follow up after her conference. Zero effort. ✅ |
📋 QUEUED BUT NOT STARTED
| Project | Notes |
|---|---|
| New Schools (Vanessa) | Needs follow-up. She said “next month” in Jan. It’s now March. Either reach out this week or acknowledge this has gone cold. |
| CRM Re-engagement | 5 emails drafted but blocked on Josh go/no-go. Reuben needs strategic clarity on whether to re-engage these contacts before sending. Ask Josh directly at next 1:1. |
| DeepLearning.AI Dev Day | April 28-29. Travel booked. No prep needed yet. |
The Capacity Math
Time Demand Estimate (March 2026)
| Category | Projects | Weekly Hours (est.) |
|---|---|---|
| Core priorities (ISTE, Tinkery, Christine, BaB scaling, Comic Studio, CRAFT) | 6 | 15-20 hrs |
| Active builds (MyBook, LabGPT, Colombia export) | 3 | 5-8 hrs |
| Reactivating (Health Coach Bot, New Schools, CRM) | 3 | 2-4 hrs |
| Low-touch / maintenance (seed grants, ABCs, HarmonAI, Anna-Lena, Kelly) | 7 | 2-3 hrs |
| Stalled / unclear (DeVeaux, King) | 2 | 0 hrs (but mental overhead) |
| Recurring (AS:DE meeting, email, Airtable) | — | 3-5 hrs |
| TOTAL | 20 | ~27-40 hrs/week |
That’s a full workweek on projects alone, before any spontaneous meetings, email, admin, or thinking time.
March Is Especially Dense
| Week | Key Events |
|---|---|
| Mar 3 | Jonathan DMV (morning blocked), Marily meeting rescheduled to Mar 4 |
| Mar 4 | Health Coach Bot meeting (9am) — sets direction for that thread |
| Mid-March | ISTE follow-ups, due diligence, quality framework |
| Mar 30 | Flash Lab at Tinkery (on campus) |
| Mar 30 – Apr 1 | Stanford trip: Tinkery Mon, Lake Forest Tue-Wed |
| Apr 28-29 | DeepLearning.AI Dev Day (SF) |
Updated Recommendations
🛑 CLOSE OUT (Finish and stop tracking)
-
Colombia chatbot — Export data for Ana. Mark complete. 1 hour of work.
-
LabGPT rename— Upgraded to active project. Cathy’s pilot study needs condition-specific system prompts (Critic vs. Co-designer guardrails). Active engineering for ~1 month. Rename still on the list but secondary to the research support. -
DeVeaux - Dancing — Change status to “On Hold - Inactive.” Remove from active tracking. Stop checking. 0 hours, just a status change.
⚠️ DECIDE (At next opportunity)
-
King - Our Voice — Ask Josh at next 1:1: “Is Our Voice yours or mine?” If no clear answer, mark On Hold.
-
Health Coach Bot — More strategic than it looks on paper. If Marily’s team gets a grant or publishes research using Build-a-Bot, it validates the platform as a research tool — not just a workshop activity. And Marily is the dean’s wife (Dan Schwartz), which gives this thread political visibility. At March 4 meeting: clarify their research direction and what you need to build to support it. This is worth investing in — but make sure they’re driving the research questions, not you.
-
MyBook (Wen) — Your role has expanded to real engineering (dashboard, survey, Firebase). This is intentional — the project needed a push to get moving, and you’re building with the intent to hand off. The risk isn’t that you’re doing it — it’s that the handoff never happens.
- Define the handoff point: What does “good enough to hand back” look like? A working prototype with documentation? A specific feature set?
- Set the exit criteria now so you know when you’re done, rather than getting pulled into maintenance indefinitely.
📤 UNBLOCK (Need Josh input)
- CRM re-engagement emails — 5 emails drafted but legitimately blocked on three open questions:
- What’s the offering? Self-service toolkit? Paid train-the-trainer? Free re-engagement with existing materials? The capacity building model is still taking shape.
- What’s the relationship model? ISTE is the test case for authorized provider / rev-share. Until that’s clearer, you don’t know what to offer other partners.
- Timing — March-April is already full (ISTE, Tinkery, Lake Forest, Dev Day). Opening 5 new partner conversations before you can deliver is worse than waiting.
- Action: This isn’t a “send the emails” task — it’s a “define the offering” task that depends on how ISTE shakes out. Revisit after ISTE formalization has a clearer shape. Flag for Josh: “CRM re-engagement is waiting on our model — is that right, or do you want me to move sooner?”
- New Schools (Vanessa) — Send a quick “checking in” email. Either this moves forward or it doesn’t. Don’t let it linger.
✅ PROTECT (Don’t add more)
-
March Stanford trip (Mar 30 – Apr 1) is now the anchor event. Tinkery Flash Lab + Lake Forest visit. Don’t let other meetings pile onto that trip. Book travel ASAP.
-
ISTE follow-ups are the other major time sink. There are 8 action items from the Feb 25 meeting. Prioritize the ones only you can do (Chris Agnew follow-up, Activation Stage concept). Let Josh/Isabelle own the rest.
If You Did All This, What Changes?
| Action | Impact |
|---|---|
| Close Colombia | 20 → 19 active |
| Close LabGPT (maintenance only) | 19 → 18 |
| Drop DeVeaux | 18 → 17 |
| Clarify King (likely On Hold) | 17 → 16 |
| Send CRM emails | 16 active + 5 partners re-engaged |
| Decide on Health Coach Bot role | Prevents scope creep |
| Time-box MyBook | Prevents scope creep |
Target: 16 active threads with clear roles on each.
Comparison: January vs. March
| Metric | January 21 | March 1 |
|---|---|---|
| Total active threads | 18 | 20 |
| Completed/delivered | — | 4 (Oman, Legal 101, Crystal Springs removed, VFT paused) |
| New threads added | — | 5 (Tinkery, Christine/Lake Forest, LabGPT, Dev Day, CRM campaign) |
| 🟢 Hot projects | 3 | 7 |
| 🔴 Stalled/cold | 2 | 4 |
| Recommended target | 14 | 16 |
The Pattern
You’re a thread-creator, not a thread-closer. Every meeting spawns a new connection, every connection spawns a project, every project spawns action items. This is your superpower — it’s why you’re good at this job. But it means active management of the portfolio is essential, not optional.
The good news: your core priorities are sharper than in January. ISTE, Tinkery, Build-a-Bot scaling, and the Stanford March trip are clearly the right bets. The risk is that the 12 non-core threads collectively eat the time you need for the 6 that matter most.
The Question That Hasn’t Changed
From January: “The issue isn’t that any single project is bad. They’re all good. The issue is you’re the bottleneck on too many of them.”
This is still true. But now you have a capacity building model (from the Feb 19 work with Josh) and a clear scaling narrative (ISTE as authorized provider, Gregory as trained facilitator, CRM re-engagement). The path from “I do everything” to “others can do this” is more concrete than it was 6 weeks ago.
The priority for March: Close the closeable things, make the 3-4 key decisions listed above, and keep the March Stanford trip + ISTE formalization as your north stars.
The “No” Scripts (unchanged — still useful)
For new partnerships:
“This sounds interesting. Let me check my capacity and the team’s priorities, and I’ll get back to you by [date].”
For scope creep on existing projects:
“I want to make sure I can give this the attention it deserves. Right now I’m at capacity with [X, Y, Z]. Can we revisit this in [timeframe]?”
For things that aren’t yours:
“This sounds like something [Josh/Joe/Christine] might be better positioned to help with. Let me connect you.”
For stalled projects:
“I’m going to step back from actively pursuing this. Please reach out when you’re ready to re-engage.”
Updated: March 1, 2026 Previous version: January 21, 2026
goals/capacity-analysis.md