Cognitive Engineering & Self-Mastery — Part 7C: Reputation → Mission (Legacy Flywheel & Public-Good OS)

Track: Mission Charter · Cause Portfolio · Impact Ledger · Governance · Licensing · Resilience · Legacy KPIs

Reputation is permission; mission is purpose. The flywheel turns when your receipts fund a system that serves others whether you are present or not.

1) From Proof to Purpose (The Legacy Equation)

• Proof → Trust → Invitation → Institution.
• Legacy Dividend = (Impact × Durability × Steward Health) ÷ Fragility.
• Law: If the good work stops when you stop, it’s not yet a legacy—only a performance.

2) Mission Charter (One Page that Decides Everything)

Charter (copy/paste)

MISSION: _______________________________________________
BENEFICIARIES: _________________________________________
CORE PROGRAMMES (3): 1) ______ 2) ______ 3) ______
NON-NEGOTIABLES (ethics/quality): ______________________
MONTHLY ARTEFACTS (receipts): __________________________
EVIDENCE LINKS (public): _______________________________
  

3) Cause Portfolio (Barbell for Impact)

• Near Field (80%): solvable, local, high-feedback problems.
• Far Field (20%): long-horizon bets (education, open tools, standards).
• Each cause has: theory of change → leading indicator → receipt cadence.

Cause Card

CAUSE: _______________________  HORIZON: near / far
THEORY OF CHANGE: ______________________________________
LEADING INDICATOR: _____________________________________
MONTHLY RECEIPT (what we ship): ________________________
RISKS (2): ____________________  BUFFERS (2): __________
  

4) Impact Ledger (Receipts, Not Vibes)

• Track Units of Help (UoH): the smallest meaningful improvement.
• Publish an Impact Receipt monthly: before/after, testimony, artefact links.
• Compute Unit Impact Cost (UIC) to direct resources intelligently.

5) Governance & Stewardship (Protect the Protectors)

• Steward Rotation: rotate leads quarterly; shadow → lead → mentor.
• Conflict of Interest: disclose in public notes; recuse by default.
• Bus Factor Plan: 3 people can independently continue core ops.

Steward Charter

ROLE: __________________  TERM: ____ months
DECISIONS I OWN: ________________________________________
RED LINES (recusal triggers): ___________________________
SUCCESSION (shadow → lead): _____________________________
WEEKLY REPORT DUE: day/time + public link
  

6) Licensing & Sharing (Trust at the Speed of Clarity)

• Pick a license per artefact: CC-BY, CC-BY-SA, MIT/Apache-2.0, or Community License (free for charities, paid for commercial).
• Publish USAGE.md with allowed/prohibited uses + attribution line.
• Create a Partner Badge and directory for adopters.

USAGE.md (skeleton)

Allowed: adapt/share with attribution; non-exploitative contexts.
Prohibited: resell without added value; deceptive or harmful use.
Attribution: “Built on [Project] by [Org] — link”
Contact for commercial licensing: _______________________
  

7) Resilience & Ethics (When Things Break)

• Platform Failure: mirror content, email/RSS list, status page.
• Reputational Shock: publish facts, corrective actions, and independent review timeline.
• Burnout: mandatory deload months; stewardship cap on hours.

8) Legacy KPIs (10-Year Proof)

• Units of Help/month ↑
• Unit Impact Cost ↓ (without quality loss)
• Steward rotation on time ≥ 90%
• Independent forks/adopters/partners ↑
• Bus factor ≥ 3 at all times
• Public receipts published 12/12 months

Templates (Copy/Paste)

Legacy One-Pager

MISSION IN 1 SENTENCE: __________________________________
WHY NOW: ________________________________________________
WHO BENEFITS: ___________________________________________
PROOF (3 links): 1) ____ 2) ____ 3) ____
YEAR-1 SHIPS (monthly): _________________________________
RISKS/BUFFERS: __________________________________________
  

Public Receipt (Monthly)

WHAT CHANGED: before → after in one paragraph
EVIDENCE: link to artefact/testimony/data
COST: £___   UoH: ___   UIC: £___
NEXT: one improvement for next month
  

Partner MOU (lightweight)

Scope: __________________ Duration: __ months
We provide: ____________  You provide: ____________
Success: measurable target ________________________
IP/License: CC-BY-SA / MIT / Community (circle one)
Public receipt cadence: monthly / quarterly
  

Risk Register

RISK → PROB/IMPACT → OWNER → BUFFER → STATUS
Platform ban → M/H → Ops → mirror + list → ready
Key steward burnout → M/M → HR → rotation + deload → monitoring
Funding gap → M/H → Finance → reserve 6 months → target
  

Seven-Day “Mission Lift-Off” Sprint

1. D1: Draft Mission Charter + Legacy One-Pager.
2. D2: Define Cause Portfolio (2 near, 1 far) + Cause Cards.
3. D3: Build Impact Ledger (backfill one month) + compute UIC.
4. D4: Publish USAGE.md + choose licenses for 3 artefacts.
5. D5: Write Steward Charter + rotation calendar.
6. D6: Risk Register + Bus-Factor checklist + backups.
7. D7: Post the first Public Receipt; invite 2 partners.

Free Execution Prompt — Legacy Flywheel Architect (10-Year Proof)

You are my Legacy Flywheel Architect (Part 7C).
Goal: turn reputation into a durable public-good mission with a charter, cause portfolio, impact ledger, governance, licensing, and resilience.

ASK FIRST:
1) The smallest real change we’ve helped create (one receipt)
2) Who benefitted most (describe the person/community)
3) Three artefacts we can share or license
4) Current team/stewards and weekly capacity
5) Top 3 risks that keep us up at night

DO THIS:
1) Draft a one-page Mission Charter and Legacy One-Pager.
2) Propose a Cause Portfolio (2 near / 1 far) with leading indicators.
3) Create an Impact Ledger template; compute a first UIC.
4) Recommend licenses per artefact; write a USAGE.md skeleton.
5) Produce a Steward Charter + rotation plan + bus-factor checklist.
6) Build a Risk Register with buffers and owners.
7) Output a Seven-Day Mission Lift-Off Sprint and “first Public Receipt”.

OUTPUT / ARTEFACTS:
- Mission Charter + Legacy One-Pager
- Cause Portfolio + Cause Cards
- Impact Ledger + first month receipt
- Licensing plan + USAGE.md
- Steward Charter + rotation
- Risk Register + bus-factor plan
- 7-day sprint to publish and invite partners

EVIDENCE GRADING:
- High: public receipt posted; UIC computed; rotation calendar live; partner invites sent.
- Moderate: charter + ledger drafted; licenses chosen; receipt in review.
- Low: drafts only → shrink scope to one cause; ship one receipt before expanding.

LINK-FORWARD:
Subject complete. Recommend advancing to “Systems Thinking & Interdisciplinary Logic” (Pillar 4) to scale mission design across domains.
    

FAQ (Part 7C)

Status: Subject 3 complete · Next pillar: Systems Thinking & Interdisciplinary Logic.

Apply It Now (5 minutes)

1. One action: What will you do in 5 minutes that reflects this essay? (write 1 sentence)
2. When & where: If it’s [time] at [place], I will [action].
3. Proof: Who will you show or tell? (name 1 person)

You are my Micro-Action Coach. Based on this essay’s theme, ask me:
1) My 5-minute action,
2) Exact time/place,
3) A friction check (what could stop me? give a tiny fix),
4) A 3-question nightly reflection.
Then generate a 3-day plan and a one-line identity cue I can repeat.

🧠 AI Processing Reality… Commit now, then come back tomorrow and log what changed.