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---
name: principle-subtract-before-you-add
description: "Apply when new work would otherwise build on dead or redundant structure."
license: MIT
metadata:
author: jstack-maintainers
source: michael-denyer/pstack-claude
source-version: "0.9.130"
source-commit: d88063f3355a5ecff0e6dbb890a11bab4b08bc2e
owner: software-factory
risk: low
capabilities: jstack,engineering-principle
user-invocable: false
---
# Subtract Before You Add
When evolving a system, remove complexity first, then build. Default to subtraction.
Make simplification a continual investment. Leave the design slightly simpler and more capable behind the same or smaller surface than you found it.
- Sequence removal before construction
- Cut before you polish (get to the minimum before investing in quality)
- Design for observed usage, not speculative edge cases
- No speculative validators, parsers, or guards beyond what the spec demands
- Simplify prompts (remove redundant instructions, excessive templates)
- When a reference has no novel content, delete it rather than leaving a stub
