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The Inbox is for unclarified work. It is the safe place for ideas, external captures, anomalies noticed by agents, shared links, or tasks that need human judgment before becoming actionable.

What belongs in the Inbox

  • A rough idea that might become a project
  • A support issue that needs triage
  • A link an agent noticed but should not act on yet
  • A follow-up without enough context
  • A source capture from an external system

What does not belong there

  • Work that already has a clear owner and next action
  • Recurring duties that should be orders
  • Reference material that should be a document
  • Decisions that should be answered as questions

Triage moves

MoveUse when
Make readyThe next action is clear and can be assigned now.
Attach to projectThe item belongs inside an existing outcome.
Create projectThe capture is really a multi-step outcome.
DeferThe work is real but should not surface yet.
DropThe work should not happen.

Source keys

When work comes from a stable external source, agents can include a source_key such as:
github:owner/repo#412
linear:ENG-1234
gmail_thread:18f3ab2c1d
helpscout:46266
Fortress uses source keys to avoid creating duplicates when the same external item is captured again.
The Inbox is not failure. It is the buffer that keeps unclear work from polluting agent queues.