Restoration and Recovery Goals Handler

Input: $ARGUMENTS

Overview

Handler for goals focused on REBUILDING from damage, not improving from baseline. These are distinct because: you’re not building on a foundation — you’re rebuilding FROM damage, there’s often an emotional/psychological recovery component, path dependence matters, trust/credibility may need to be re-earned, and the “before” state may not be achievable or desirable.

Steps

Step 1: Assess the Damage

1. What was damaged/lost? (Be specific)
2. What caused the damage? (Root cause, not just the event)
3. Is the damage ongoing or has it stopped?
4. What is the current state? (Honest baseline, not wishful thinking)
5. What was the “before” state? (Is returning to it realistic or even desirable?)

Step 2: Triage — What’s Urgent vs Important

Rule: Stabilize before rebuilding. Don’t start constructing while the ground is still shaking.

Step 3: Acknowledge the Emotional Component

Recovery isn’t just practical — it’s emotional:

1. Grief: What was lost that can’t come back?
2. Anger: Who/what caused this? Is the anger useful or destructive?
3. Fear: What are you afraid will happen again?
4. Shame: Is there self-blame? Is it justified or excessive?
5. Acceptance: What must be accepted before rebuilding can begin?

Not all recovery goals have an emotional component, but many do. Ignoring it sabotages the practical recovery.

Step 4: Define Recovery Target

The “before” state is often not the right target:

Choose the target explicitly. Don’t default to “back to how it was.”

Step 5: Design Recovery Plan

Different from a standard plan because of path dependence:

1. What can be recovered immediately? (Quick wins for morale)
2. What requires sustained effort? (Months of work)
3. What requires others’ cooperation? (Trust rebuilding, relationship repair)
4. What requires time only? (Some things heal with time, not action)
5. What cannot be recovered? (Accept and grieve, then build around it)

RECOVERY PLAN:
Phase 1 — Stabilize (now):
- [stop ongoing damage]
- [secure what's left]

Phase 2 — Quick Recovery (days-weeks):
- [easy wins that restore confidence]
- [rebuild basic functionality]

Phase 3 — Deep Recovery (weeks-months):
- [address root causes]
- [rebuild trust/credibility/capacity]

Phase 4 — Growth (months+):
- [build beyond previous state]
- [apply lessons learned]

Cannot recover: [what must be accepted as permanent]

Step 6: Handle Trust and Credibility

If the damage involved others’ trust:

1. Acknowledge: State clearly what happened and your role in it
2. Apologize: If warranted, without qualifications
3. Change behavior: Demonstrate change through action, not promises
4. Accept timeline: Trust recovery takes longer than you want — accept their pace
5. Don’t keep score: “I’ve been good for 3 months, why don’t you trust me yet?” → This sets you back

Step 7: Build Anti-Fragility

Use the recovery to become stronger than before:

1. What caused the damage? How to prevent recurrence?
2. What made you vulnerable? How to reduce vulnerability?
3. What buffering would help? (Financial reserves, relationship reserves, health reserves)
4. What monitoring would provide early warning?
5. What recovery capability should be maintained? (So next time recovery is faster)

Step 8: Report

RECOVERY PLAN:
Damage: [what was lost/broken]
Cause: [root cause]
Current state: [honest baseline]
Recovery target: [restore / rebuild better / adapt / reframe]

Recovery timeline:
Phase 1 (stabilize): [actions] — by [when]
Phase 2 (quick wins): [actions] — by [when]
Phase 3 (deep recovery): [actions] — by [when]
Phase 4 (growth): [actions] — by [when]

Cannot recover: [permanent losses accepted]
Trust repair: [if applicable — specific steps]
Anti-fragility: [how to be stronger after recovery]

Emotional status: [acknowledged / processing / resolved]

When to Use

• Starting from damaged/broken state, not neutral
• Trust, credibility, or health was lost
• Need to recover before you can grow
• Emotional processing is part of the work
• → INVOKE: /fat (failure attribution) for understanding what went wrong
• → INVOKE: /fr (failure recovery) for structured recovery
• → INVOKE: /cfr (conflict resolution) for relationship damage

Verification

• Damage honestly assessed (not minimized or exaggerated)
• Triage performed (emergency → urgent → important → long-term)
• Emotional component acknowledged (if present)
• Recovery target explicitly chosen (not defaulting to “back to before”)
• Trust repair addressed (if applicable)
• Anti-fragility measures included (don’t just recover — get stronger)