STSHC v1.0 · Start Here
Implementation
Guide & Onboarding

Your entry point into the STSHC v1.0 ecosystem. Select your pathway, follow the steps in order, and use the right tool at the right time.

STSHC_ONBOARDING_v1.0 Start Here Pre-validation release
Mandatory Regulatory Boundary & Operational Disclaimer

All STSHC tools operate as voluntary, non-diagnostic, non-clinical planning heuristics. No tool functions as a medical device, clinical decision tool, or performance management classifier. All SC and ACI scores are personal planning inputs only — they carry inherent self-report variance and should be treated as directional planning inputs rather than precise capacity readings. This ecosystem must never be used for employment, disciplinary, or fitness-for-duty determinations. STSHC compliance is currently self-declared; formal certification is planned for Version 2.0.

Who are you? Select your pathway.
Individual Practitioner

Solo operator, creator, or knowledge worker looking to understand and manage your own capacity day to day.

~15 min to first SC score
HR / Team Leader

HR professional, team lead, or operations manager deploying STSHC across a team or organization.

~90 days to full deployment
Individual pathway overview: Four phases taking you from first SC score to a sustainable daily practice and deeper capacity literacy. Each phase builds on the last — complete them in order.
Day 1
First Score
Week 1
Daily Habit
Week 2–4
30-Day Log
Ongoing
Full Practice
Phase 1 Get Your First SC Score ~15 min · Day 1
1
Read first
Understand what you're doing and why
White Paper — Introduction & Six Pillars
20 min

Before scoring anything, read the Introduction and Sections 1–2 of the White Paper. You need to understand the core thesis — capacity is the hidden variable that explains why equal effort does not produce equal outcomes — and the six pillars that underpin the SC equation: Biological (McEwen & Stellar, 1993), Psychological (Thayer/Porges), Cognitive (Leroy, 2009), Meaning (Deci & Ryan), Relational (Coan, 2015), and Regenerative (Fredrickson; Bunzeck & Düzel, 2006).

You don't need to read the full document now. Sections 1–2 and Section 3 (SC formula) are sufficient to begin.

2
Interactive tool
Score your first SC
Individual SC Scorecard — all 5 variables
5 min

Open the Individual SC Scorecard and rate all five variables (MEI, ASI, PRS, ABC, SFV) on a 1–5 scale. Your SC calculates automatically on a 0–20 planning scale and routes you to one of four capacity tiers: Full Availability (17–20), Baseline Availability (12–16), Conservation State (7–11), or Restoration State (0–6). Workload-Reduction Guidance activates regardless of total SC score if MEI = 1 or ASI = 1. Read the routing guidance for your tier carefully.

  • If MEI = 1 or ASI = 1: Workload-Reduction Guidance is active. Do not push through. That is the system working correctly.
  • If you score Conservation State (7–11): Open the Conservation State Task Interval Guide next.
  • Day-to-day fluctuations of 2–3 points are expected — they do not indicate anything is wrong.
Phase 2 Build the Daily Practice ~5 min/day · Week 1
3
Daily ritual · Interactive
Switch to the Morning Check-In as your daily tool
Faster than the Scorecard — sliders, live SC, saves automatically
Daily · 3 min

Once you understand the five variables, the Morning Check-In is your daily tool. Slide each variable, get your SC, read the routing guidance, and plan your session accordingly. Complete this before opening any other application.

The Individual SC Scorecard (Step 2) has detailed anchor descriptions for each score. Use it when you're uncertain about a rating. Use the Morning Check-In for speed once you're comfortable.

4
Deeper daily planning · Interactive
Add the Creator Capacity Ledger for full session planning
Block planning, guardrail checklists, EOD review
Daily · 10 min

The Ledger extends the morning check-in into a full daily planning session. After scoring your SC, you map your three work blocks (Deep Focus / Conservation / Batch Communication), set guardrails for each, add session notes, and complete a brief end-of-day review.

Use the Morning Check-In or the Ledger each day — not both. The Ledger is the fuller version; the Check-In is the lightweight version for high-velocity days.

5
When SC is 7–11
Use the Conservation State Guide on low-capacity days
20-min interval protocol · Task routing · Re-initialization
As needed

When your SC falls into Conservation State (7–11), the standard daily planning tools aren't enough — you need a structured pacing protocol. The Conservation State Guide walks you through the 2-min triage gate, 20-min focus intervals, and 10-min rest periods, plus re-initialization logic after three cycles.

Phase 3 Build Pattern Recognition Weeks 2–4
6
30-day tracking · Interactive · Persistent
Start the 30-Day Capacity Workbook
Daily SC log · Weekly longitudinal review · Pattern recognition
Daily · 5 min

After one week of daily scoring, you have enough baseline data to start recognizing patterns. The 30-Day Workbook logs your SC each day and presents a 7-day longitudinal review every week — surfacing which variables drive your Conservation and Restoration State days.

  • Complete Day 1 prompts first (interruption mapping, meaning friction, sensory friction sources)
  • Navigate with ← Prev / Next → / Today buttons
  • Complete the Week 1 review on Day 7
  • Dominant variable identification is the most valuable output — it tells you what to fix first
7
Workspace setup · One time
Configure your workspace architecture
Notion / Trello / Desktop zone layout
1–2 hrs

Once you know which variables drive your friction (from the 30-Day Workbook), configure your workspace to reduce them structurally. The Workspace Binder provides pre-formatted Notion, Trello, and desktop templates aligned to your neurological variance profile.

  • High SFV: Deploy the desktop Zone A / Zone B layout and activate batch communication windows
  • High ABC: Use the Meaning-aligned task routing in the Trello multi-track canvas
  • Monotropic profile: Use the Notion single-track dock with sensory containment toggle
Human Variability Principle (STSHC v1.0): Variability is not dysfunction. Fluctuation is not failure. Neurological variance is accommodated as organizational infrastructure, not managed as individual exception.
Phase 4 Sustain & Scale Ongoing
8
Delivery structure · Optional
Adopt the 6+1 Wave Cycle for your projects
6-week production + 1-week maintenance · Regenerative capacity
Setup: 1 hr

The 6+1 Wave Cycle replaces open-ended linear delivery with rhythmic capacity-aware cycles. Six weeks of focused production followed by a mandatory Maintenance & Review phase — a one-week Absolute New-Feature Freeze redirecting bandwidth to documentation, refactoring, and technical debt elimination. For solopreneurs, this is a creative output calendar. For teams, it becomes governance infrastructure.

9
Reference · Any time
Use the Glossary and White Paper for depth
Definitions · Theory · Governance
Reference

The Official Glossary is your quick-reference for any term you encounter across the ecosystem. The White Paper is the full theoretical and governance document — return to it when you want to understand why a tool works the way it does, or when preparing to explain the framework to others.

Individual Pathway — Quick Reference
Morning Check-In
Daily SC score before starting work
Daily
Creator Capacity Ledger
Full session planning with block allocation
Daily
Conservation State Guide
Pacing protocol when SC is 7–11
As needed
30-Day Workbook
Pattern recognition across 30 days + weekly review
Daily + weekly
Individual SC Scorecard
Detailed scoring with anchor descriptions
When unsure
Workspace Binder
One-time workspace configuration
Once
6+1 Wave Cycle Kit
Delivery cycle governance
Per cycle
Glossary · White Paper
Reference and theoretical depth
Reference
Enterprise pathway overview: Four phases across approximately 90 days. This pathway deploys STSHC as organizational infrastructure — not an individual wellness program. Each phase has a clear deliverable and gating condition before proceeding.
Week 1–2
Foundation
Week 3–4
Diagnose
Week 5–12
Deploy
Ongoing
Govern
Phase 1 Build the Foundation Weeks 1–2
1
Read first — HR Lead & Sponsor
Read the White Paper and Master Manual
Full theoretical framework · SC & ACI mechanics · Ethical Firewall
3–4 hrs

The HR lead and organizational sponsor must read the full White Paper and Master Manual before any deployment begins. Pay particular attention to Section 6 (Ethical Firewall Protocol) and Section 7 (Organizational Design Architecture). These define the non-negotiable data governance requirements.

You cannot deploy STSHC without the Ethical Firewall Protocol in place. Individual SC scores are encrypted client-side and never stored on any server in identifiable form. Individual scores must never be accessible to management — by design, not by policy alone.
2
Leadership briefing · Optional deck
Brief leadership using the MasterClass Deck
12-slide visual deck for C-suite and executive sponsors
30 min

If you need executive buy-in before proceeding, use the MasterClass Deck as your briefing document. It covers the capacity crisis, six pillars, SC routing tiers, organizational impact model, and implementation timeline in 12 slides.

Phase 2 Diagnose the Baseline Weeks 3–4
3
Financial audit · Interactive calculator
Run the Focus Fragmentation Impact Calculator
Estimate monthly attention overhead cost across the team
15 min

Before deploying any tools, quantify the theoretical cost of your current interruption architecture. Enter team size, average salary, and daily interruption events. The calculator produces an estimated monthly attention overhead figure and routes you to the appropriate implementation pathway.

This output is a theoretical illustrative estimate only — use it as a directional planning input, not a financial guarantee. Share it with leadership to establish a baseline for the 90-day evaluation.

4
ACI calibration · Enterprise
Run the Delphi Weight Assignment process
Locally calibrate w1–w6 for your team's operational context
1.5–2 hrs

Before activating the ACI Enterprise Dashboard, your team needs locally calibrated weights. The Delphi Tool guides a panel of 5–10 stakeholders through a 6-step structured consensus process — two anonymous rating rounds with SD-flagged disagreement surfacing. Outputs w1–w6 for direct use in the ACI Dashboard. The ACI formula applies a ×4 multiplier to align to the 0–20 SC planning scale.

  • Recruit panelists with diverse roles — HR, managers, individual contributors
  • Rounds 1 and 2 can be completed asynchronously one week apart
  • Organizations using pre-set profiles (Knowledge Work / Caregiving / Creative) can skip this step initially and run it at the 90-day review
Phase 3 Deploy the Infrastructure Weeks 5–12
5
Individual rollout · Voluntary
Roll out individual SC tools to practitioners
Morning Check-In · Creator Ledger · Conservation Guide
Week 5–6

Individual tool adoption must be strictly voluntary. Share the Morning Check-In, Creator Capacity Ledger, and Conservation State Guide with practitioners. Provide the Official Glossary as a reference. Do not require participation — the Ethical Firewall depends on voluntary engagement.

  • Brief practitioners using the Creator Pipeline Map if team is primarily creative/solopreneur-type roles
  • Share the Individual SC Scorecard first for detailed onboarding, then transition to Morning Check-In for speed
  • Ensure practitioners understand: individual scores are never accessible to management
6
Communication architecture
Activate batch communication windows
10:00 AM / 3:30 PM daily · 6+1 Wave Cycle governance
Week 6–8

Deploy the batch communication window architecture (10:00 AM / 3:30 PM) and introduce the 6+1 Wave Cycle governance structure. The Wave Cycle Kit contains the full governance playbook including the Batch Communication Blueprint, Critical Gateway Protocol, and Day 5 Team Planning Review process.

7
Team-level planning · Ethical Firewall required
Activate the ACI Enterprise Dashboard
Aggregate capacity planning · n ≥ 5 suppression · Wave routing
Day 5 weekly

Once individual tools are in place and practitioners have at least one week of voluntary SC scoring, activate the ACI Dashboard for the Day 5 Team Planning Review. Load your Delphi-calibrated weights (or select a pre-set profile), enter voluntary operator scores, and use the aggregate output to inform wave initialization decisions.

  • Minimum n = 5 — results are suppressed below this threshold
  • Individual scores are never stored or surfaced — by design, not by policy
  • ACI routing guidance informs wave scope, not individual performance
Phase 4 Govern & Review Day 90 + Ongoing
8
90-day evaluation
Conduct the 90-Day Capacity Health Report
Aggregate SC trends · Attrition signals · Adoption rate
Day 90

At Day 90, HR evaluates aggregate SC/ACI data alongside attrition signals, satisfaction scores, and tool adoption rate. All individual data remains encrypted and team-aggregated only. Use findings to decide whether to continue, adjust wave cadence, or invest in deeper implementation (MasterClass curriculum).

  • Compare aggregate ACI mean from Weeks 1–2 vs Weeks 10–12
  • Review dominant drag variable distribution (ABC vs SFV)
  • Assess batch window adoption and interruption frequency changes
  • Decide if Delphi weight recalibration is needed before next cycle
9
Enterprise curriculum · Premium
Deploy the MasterClass for leadership development
6-module curriculum · ACI governance · Wave cycle mastery
Ongoing

The MasterClass Syllabus is the premium enterprise curriculum for leaders who want to fully internalize and institutionalize the STSHC framework. Six modules covering the full six-pillar theory, SC and ACI mechanics, capacity-aware task sequencing, protected focus architecture, and 6+1 governance integration.

Enterprise Pathway — Quick Reference
White Paper + Master Manual
Foundation reading before any deployment
Once
MasterClass Deck
Leadership briefing and executive buy-in
Once
Fragmentation Calculator
Baseline attention overhead estimate
Baseline
Delphi Weight Tool
ACI weight calibration for your team context
Annual
Individual SC tools
Voluntary practitioner rollout
Daily
6+1 Wave Cycle Kit
Batch windows + wave governance
Per cycle
ACI Enterprise Dashboard
Day 5 team planning review
Weekly
MasterClass Syllabus
Premium leadership curriculum
Program
What successful implementation looks like
Individual
Daily SC score → informed task routing → pattern recognition across 30 days → workspace configured to reduce dominant drag variable
Team
Voluntary SC adoption → batch windows active → 6+1 wave cycle → ACI Day 5 review → 90-day capacity health report
What it is not
A surveillance system. A performance classifier. A clinical tool. Individual scores are never seen by management — by design.
Pre-validation notice
All tools are pre-validation release. Tier boundaries are theoretically derived. Treat all outputs as directional planning inputs, not precise thresholds.