Every life stage has work to do and a distance that can be calculated.

Collect, Compare, Then Decide Yourself

Let an agent gather and tabulate options so your hours go into skills and choices.

Distress→Need→Delegation tests→Desire→Gap→Path

1Distress · What Would They Say

I have sixty tabs of job listings and no shortlist.

I compare rentals for hours and still sign blind.

I don’t know which skill is worth the next six months.

Everyone says use AI. Nobody says for what.

2Real Need · How to Verify

At this stage the work is generating options and building skill, not making irreversible bets. That makes the gathering delegable — and makes delegating the decision a way of skipping the part that builds you.

Verification signals (two or more and the need is real):
　· The output is a table you can audit row by row
　· Every number traces to a source you can open
　· A reversible test still follows: a visit, a trial shift, an interview

3Principle · What Is Actually Happening

Verification cost economics + irreversibility

Delegate the search when a wrong row costs you a minute; keep the choice when a wrong choice costs you a year. A jobs table with links is self-correcting: you spot a bad row and delete it. Accepting an offer is not.

The trap at this age is that the search feels like progress. It is only progress if it ends in a test you actually run.

4Three Tests · Before You Hand Anything Over

Basis taken from the cell framework. All three must pass; a failed test is a stop, not a warning.

Can I hand <specific task> to an agent?

Basis: Verification cost economics

You can check the agent's output against a known source in under 5 minutes.
The task takes you more than 15 minutes to do manually.
The output is a list, table, or summary that you can spot-check for errors.

If any fails, do it yourself or break it into smaller checkable steps.

Can I hand <specific task> to an agent?

Basis: Principal-agent cost

The result is observable and verifiable without watching the process.
You can define success with a clear yes/no or a number (e.g., 'at least 10 listings').
The agent's output can be compared to a known correct answer or a second source.

If any fails, keep the task or add a verification step you control.

Can I hand <specific task> to an agent?

Basis: Real options / irreversibility

The task does not commit you to a decision that is costly to reverse (e.g., signing a lease, accepting a job).
You can undo or ignore the agent's output without financial or legal consequence.
The task is exploratory (gathering options) rather than decisive (choosing one).

If any fails, keep the decision yourself and use the agent only for options.

5Desire · What Does It Look Like

A shortlist instead of an endless feed

Skills chosen on evidence, not vibes

A decision I can defend at home

6Gap · How to Judge

What to look at

Hours per week searching · options compared with sources · real tests run before deciding

How to judge

Did the search end in a visit, a trial or an interview — or in more searching?

Healthy state

≤5 hours searching per decision · every option sourced · at least one real test per decision

7Gap · Divided into Three Levels

MildAggregation → automate

ModerateComparison → automate, test one option in person

SevereEndless searching, no test → stop, the search is the avoidance

8Common Misconceptions · Wrong Paths

Ask the agent to choose your career —— it has no stake in the answer and no access to your life

Accept a summary as the market —— a summary is a snapshot, the market moves

Skip the interview prep because the CV was generated —— the conversation is still yours

Optimise for the most options instead of one test —— options without a test are entertainment

9The Right Path

Name the decision and the date you will make it

Hand over collection and tabulation only, links mandatory

Audit three rows against the source

Run one real test before the date: a visit, a call, a trial

Decide on the test, not on the table

This page does not ask for your salary, savings or debt. It is about which part of the search to hand over.

Theoretical basis: Verification cost economics · Real options / irreversibility · Task decomposability
Limitations: this is a judgement framework, not financial, medical or legal advice. Where a licensed professional is required, the agent can prepare and cannot decide.

AI Agents line · 19-24 · one of 100 cells