# 26,000 words before I type a thing

Status: DRAFT, nothing posted. Single-image infographic, 2 slide(s), no cover. Idea IB-0288.

## What it shows

How much instruction text loads before the first prompt in this workspace, and the proposed target from the 9 October review. Slide 2 is how text moves out without losing a guard. The review is a proposal; words are approximate.

No numbers appear on the slides unless listed below.

## Claims and sources

| Claim | Source (agency-operator unless stated) | Read-date |
|---|---|---|
| About 26,000 words load every session: 2 CLAUDE.md files about 2,500, 28 rule files about 22,000, memory index about 800 | `docs/instructions-review-2026-10-09.md` (Why), read 2026-10-11 | 2026-10-11 |
| Target always-on total about 5,000 to 5,600 words; nothing safety-related is deleted | `docs/instructions-review-2026-10-09.md` (Target); status: proposal | 2026-10-11 |
| Moved text goes into references files or the owning skill, so nothing is lost and git keeps the old versions | `docs/instructions-review-2026-10-09.md` (How it would be done) | 2026-10-11 |