diff --git a/src/servers/api/command-hq/directory.ts b/src/servers/api/command-hq/directory.ts
index 3469b4b9..7d06a306 100644
--- a/src/servers/api/command-hq/directory.ts
+++ b/src/servers/api/command-hq/directory.ts
@@ -246,15 +246,37 @@ export function commanderClaudeMd(params: CommanderClaudeMdParams): string {
     'when first needed gives the owner nowhere to look before that, and no hint that looking is a thing they',
     'do.',
     '',
-    '## Before arming anything',
+    '## The first turn',
     '',
-    'Never arm a watcher on the first turn. The first turn is for settling what to watch and what to do',
-    'about it — arming before that is arming a guess, and a wrong condition either never fires or fires',
-    'constantly and is found out days later. Ask, and arm once it is agreed.',
+    "Two things were named before anything was said: this commander's name, and the reference path above.",
+    'That is all anybody has decided. Everything else is settled in conversation, on this turn.',
     '',
-    'This section describes turn one, and it is true for as long as it stays here unedited. Once the job',
-    'is settled, replace it with what was agreed — what this commander watches for and what it does when',
-    'that happens — so the next turn reads the answer instead of the question.',
+    '**Look before you ask.** Go and read the reference path first — how many items, what kinds, how they',
+    'are named, how recently they arrive. A first question grounded in what is actually there is worth ten',
+    'generic ones: "there are nine `.m4a` files, newest twenty minutes ago, all named',
+    '`memo-<date>-<time>` — are those what I am watching for?" tells the owner you understand the subject',
+    'and gives them something concrete to correct.',
+    '',
+    'The name is a clue, not a specification. It says what the subject is. It never says what to do about',
+    'it, and guessing that is how a commander ends up doing something nobody asked for.',
+    '',
+    '**One question at a time.** This is a conversation, not a form. Ask, listen, and let the answer change',
+    'what you ask next.',
+    '',
+    'What has to be settled before anything is armed:',
+    '',
+    '- **What counts as a new item.** Which extensions, top level or recursive, anything to ignore.',
+    '- **What happens to one.** The action — or that there is none, and the trigger is the whole job.',
+    '- **Where the result goes.** Beside the source, into `classification/`, somewhere else entirely.',
+    '- **Whether there is classification at all.** Most commanders do not need it. Do not invent it.',
+    '- **How often to look**, and say out loud that the number is provisional until it has run a while.',
+    '',
+    '**Never arm a watcher on this turn.** Arming before the above is agreed is arming a guess, and a wrong',
+    'condition either never fires or fires constantly — either way it is found out days later. Ask, agree,',
+    'then arm.',
+    '',
+    'When it is settled, REPLACE this section with what was agreed: what this commander watches for, what it',
+    'does about it, and which numbers were guesses. The next turn should read the answer, not the questions.',
     '',
   ].join('\n');
 }
diff --git a/src/workspaces/officerdev/src/apps/CommandHQ/CommandHqDetail.tsx b/src/workspaces/officerdev/src/apps/CommandHQ/CommandHqDetail.tsx
index 315145b9..88f0fb7c 100644
--- a/src/workspaces/officerdev/src/apps/CommandHQ/CommandHqDetail.tsx
+++ b/src/workspaces/officerdev/src/apps/CommandHQ/CommandHqDetail.tsx
@@ -106,10 +106,12 @@ const startBrief = (name: string, referencePath: string): string =>
     'are setting you up, and not on a first run. If you find work of that kind already waiting here, it',
     'is mine to start, not yours to volunteer for.',
     '',
-    'Now: can you tell what the job is from what is written here, or not?',
+    'So: go and LOOK at it first, then talk to me. How many things are in there, what kinds, how they are',
+    'named, how recently they arrive. Open with what you actually found and one question about it — that',
+    'is worth ten generic ones, and it tells me straight away whether you are looking at the right thing.',
     '',
-    'If you CAN — say what you understood, in your own words, and ask me to confirm or correct it.',
-    'If you CANNOT — ask me what you should be watching for here. One question, and wait.',
+    'The name tells you the subject. It never tells you what to do about it, so do not decide that part on',
+    'your own. One question, and wait.',
     '',
     'Once you are running, you owe me exactly two messages here per event, and I should never have to ask',
     'for them: one line when the thing you watch for happens, and a short report when the work is done.',
@@ -202,9 +204,7 @@ const CommanderSetup = ({
             }`}
           >
             <FolderOpen className="h-4 w-4 shrink-0" />
-            <span className="min-w-0 flex-1 truncate font-mono text-xs">
-              {referencePath ?? 'Choose a directory…'}
-            </span>
+            <span className="min-w-0 flex-1 truncate font-mono text-xs">{referencePath ?? 'Choose a directory…'}</span>
           </button>
           <span className="text-[11px] text-muted-foreground">{t('commandHq.referencePathHint')}</span>
         </div>