Build My Personal Monorepo

Build My Personal Monorepo Background I'm a student in the Fractal Accelerator, a six-week program on AI-assisted development. My instructors are Priya and Andrew Rose, and Liam Duffy. They want me to succeed and are happy to give me as much feedback as I need along the way. Assignment Help me create a new Git repository that will serve as my personal monorepo: one organized place containing the information, projects, preferences, and context that would help an AI collaborate with me effectively. This repository should become a living map of my life and work—not merely a biography or a folder of miscellaneous notes. The goal is that I can open this repository with an AI agent in the future and say, “Read this repo and help me,” without having to explain everything about myself again. Make commits throughout the process Use Git as we work. After creating the initial repository structure, make an initial commit such as: git add . git commit -m "Initialize personal monorepo" As the repository develops, make additional coherent commits at useful milestones rather than one enormous commit at the end. Before every commit: Run git status. Review the files that changed. Make sure no secrets or unintended files are staged. Use a concise commit message that accurately describes the change. The repository should finish in a clean state unless there is a clear reason not to commit something. How to lead this process Act as an interviewer, information architect, and collaborative editor. Briefly explain what you propose to create. Ask me questions in small, manageable batches, not as one enormous questionnaire. Start creating and updating files as soon as I answer. Do not wait until the interview is complete. After each batch of answers: Summarize what you learned. Add the information to the appropriate files. Tell me what you created or changed. Ask the next most useful questions. Make reasonable organizational decisions yourself. Do not repeatedly ask me to design the folder structure. Keep the initial process focused enough that we can produce a useful first version in approximately 25 minutes. Prioritize information that will make future AI collaboration more useful. Clearly distinguish between: Facts I explicitly told you Your tentative interpretations Questions that remain unanswered Never invent information about me. Confirm your capabilities This exercise is intended to run in an AI coding environment with access to: A terminal The local filesystem Git Before beginning, confirm that you can create folders, edit files, and run Git commands. If you do not have those capabilities, do not pretend to create the repository. Tell me that I need to reopen this prompt in a file-enabled coding agent before continuing. Suggested initial structure You may adapt this structure as you learn more about me: [my-name]-os/ ├── README.md ├── AGENTS.md ├── NOW.md ├── ABOUT.md ├── GOALS.md ├── PREFERENCES.md ├── PEOPLE.md ├── PROJECTS.md ├── IDEAS.md ├── ACCOUNTS.md ├── DECISIONS.md ├── OPEN_QUESTIONS.md ├── inbox/ ├── projects/ ├── areas/ ├── resources/ └── archive/ Do not create empty files merely to make the repository look complete. Create files when there is meaningful information to put in them. Core files README.md Explain: What this repository is How it is organized How I should use it How an AI agent should begin working with it How the repository should evolve over time Include a brief “Getting started” section for both me and future AI agents. AGENTS.md This is the most important file. Write operational instructions for future AI agents covering: Who I am What I am trying to accomplish How I like to think and work How I prefer an AI to communicate with me What kinds of help I find valuable What frustrates me How proactive the AI should be How to handle uncertainty, disagreement, and correction Which files should be consulted for different tasks Rules for updating the repository Rules for using Git Rules for distinguishing facts, interpretations, and speculation Write this as practical guidance, not promotional prose. Include instructions telling future agents to: Read README.md, AGENTS.md, and NOW.md first Inspect git status before editing Keep changes inside the repository Avoid overwriting user work Review diffs before committing Never commit secrets NOW.md Capture my current situation: What I am focused on now Active responsibilities Immediate problems Current experiments Important deadlines Things competing for my attention This should be easy to update frequently. ABOUT.md Capture relatively stable background: Personal and professional background Skills and expertise Important experiences Interests Values Recurring themes in my life and work GOALS.md Organize goals by useful time horizon, such as: Immediate This year Longer-term Aspirational or exploratory For each goal, record why it matters, its current status, and relevant constraints. PREFERENCES.md Capture preferences that would improve future collaboration, including: Communication style Working style Preferred tools Writing preferences Learning preferences Decision-making style Formatting preferences Things I dislike or want avoided PROJECTS.md Create an index of active, paused, prospective, and completed projects. Give substantial projects their own folders under projects/ when useful. PEOPLE.md Record people who are relevant to my work, responsibilities, projects, or goals. Include only useful relationship and collaboration context. ACCOUNTS.md Create an index of public or professional places where more context about me can be found, such as: Personal website LinkedIn GitHub X or Twitter Blog or newsletter Published writing Portfolio Public talks, interviews, or podcasts Organizations and projects I am publicly associated with Ask me for links. Do not assume that a search result belongs to me without verification. Never put passwords, authentication tokens, API keys, recovery codes, or other secrets in this file. Topics to explore Use these as a guide rather than a rigid questionnaire: What brought me to this class The biggest problems I would like AI to help me solve What I am excited about What I am building, learning, or considering My current roles and responsibilities My active projects My goals My recurring tasks and frustrations My preferred ways of working My tools and workflows The people and organizations relevant to my work My public online presence Useful notes, documents, websites, or repositories I already have Decisions I am currently trying to make Areas where I would like an AI to be more proactive Things AI systems commonly misunderstand about me Information I repeatedly have to explain to AI systems Do not attempt to cover every topic before creating anything. Follow the most valuable threads first. Privacy and secrets Assume that this repository may eventually be pushed to GitHub. Before asking for potentially sensitive information, explain why it might be useful and allow me to skip it. Do not ask me to paste: Passwords API keys Authentication tokens Recovery codes Government identification numbers Financial credentials Other secrets that should not be stored in Git Create a .gitignore that excludes common secret and machine-specific files, including at least: .env .env.* !.env.example .DS_Store When integrations may eventually require credentials: Create a safe .env.example containing placeholder variable names only Explain that actual secrets belong in a secret manager or an ignored local .env file Check staged changes for secrets before every commit Never commit real secrets Clearly flag information that should probably remain in a private repository. Begin the interview After initializing the Git repository, ask me this first small batch of questions: What name should this repository use for me? What should the repository be called? What brought me to this class? What do I most hope AI can help me accomplish? What are the three to five most important things happening in my life or work right now? What projects, responsibilities, or goals should an AI know about immediately? Where can it find reliable public information about me? Ask me for links. When an AI helps me, what does excellent collaboration feel like—and what behavior annoys me? After I answer: Create the first useful versions of the relevant files. Show me a concise summary of what changed. Run: git diff git status Make the initial commit. Continue interviewing me based on the most consequential gaps. Be productively proactive As we work, point out possibilities I may not have considered, such as: Importing existing notes or documents Adding a personal wiki Creating project-specific folders Creating reusable AI skills or workflows Adding templates for decisions, meetings, ideas, or weekly reviews Turning parts of the repository into a personal website or AI persona Creating a recurring process for keeping the repository current Creating a private GitHub repository Adding a remote and pushing the repository Cloning the repository onto another computer Syncing it with a cloud development environment Do not derail the initial exercise by implementing everything. Record promising ideas in OPEN_QUESTIONS.md or a roadmap. GitHub comes after the local repository Once the local repository contains a useful first version, ask whether I want to create a private GitHub repository for it. If I say yes: Make sure the local working tree is clean. Create a private GitHub repository, if your environment supports that. Add it as the origin remote. Push the current branch. Confirm that the remote is private. Show me the result of: git remote -v git status Do not make the repository public without my explicit instruction. If GitHub authentication is unavailable, give me the exact commands or steps needed, but leave the local Git repository fully functional. Definition of success By the end of the initial session, I should have: A new, functioning Git repository created specifically for my personal monorepo A useful commit history A clear .gitignore A useful AGENTS.md A summary of my current priorities and goals An index of my active projects Links to relevant public information about me A structure future AI agents can understand quickly A short list of valuable next steps Clear instructions for keeping the repository current Optionally, a private GitHub remote At the end, give me: A concise tour of the repository The most important things it now understands about me Important gaps or uncertainties Three recommended next steps The output of: git status git log --oneline A simple instruction I can use in a future session: Read README.md, AGENTS.md, and NOW.md, then inspect the repository and its Git status before helping me. Use the rest of the repository as context, preserve existing work, and update the relevant files when you learn durable new information. Start by confirming that you have terminal, filesystem, and Git access. Then create the new Git repository before beginning the interview.