Principle 8:
Operators Must Never Be Mixed Within a Single Step

Plain-English Summary

Each OneRoute step must represent only one type of behavior. If a step includes doing, sensing, and transforming at the same time, it is not a step—it is multiple steps.

 

What this Principle Means

In OneRoute, a step must represent exactly one operator behavior. If a step includes multiple types of behavior — such as sensing, deciding, acting, waiting, transforming, branching, or preparing — it is not a single step but a bundle of steps that must be separated.

 

Each operator describes a distinct kind of state transition. Mixing operators inside one step blurs structure, hides where time passes, obscures responsibility, and prevents clear analysis or automation. By enforcing one operator per step, OneRoute makes execution precise, diagnosable, and reusable across contexts.

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Why Mixing Breaks Understanding

Mixed steps force people to guess what is actually happening. They obscure where effort is applied, where time passes, and where awareness occurs. OneRoute requires separation so structure becomes visible.

 

Common Mixed-Step Patterns

• “Review and update the record” (Observe + Action)

• “Monitor until complete” (Observe + Wait)

• “Process and check results” (Process + Observe)

• “Wait and decide next steps” (Wait + Decision)

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Correct Decomposition

Mixed steps must be decomposed into single-behavior steps. For example:

1. Observe

2. Decision

3. Action

4. Process

5. Conclude

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​​Mini Case: The Overloaded Step

A step labeled “analyze and resolve issue” causes repeated delays. When decomposed, it becomes

1. Observe (view data)

2. Decision (identify cause)

3. Action (apply fix)

4. Process (system recalculates)

The delay was structural, not analytical.

 

How to Apply This Principle

1. Highlight verbs in the step description.

2. Identify which verbs represent doing, sensing, or transforming.

3. Split the step wherever behaviors change.

4. Assign one operator per resulting step.

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Common Misunderstandings

• Believing combined steps save time

• Assuming clarity comes from prose, not structure

• Treating separation as over-engineering

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Quick Diagnostic Questions

• Is effort, sensing, or transformation happening here?

• Would this step behave differently if no one intervened?

• Can this step be cleanly automated?

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If You Only Remember One Thing

If a step does more than one thing, it is more than one step.

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Canonical Statement

Each OneRoute step must express exactly one operator behavior. Operators must never be mixed within a single step.