Wang Kai IFS Internal Family Systems AI-Assisted Practice + Claude Skill Definition

Wang Kai applied Richard Schwartz's IFS (Internal Family Systems), the Internal Family Systems model, psychotherapy framework with Claude AI to build a complete Skill.

Not just for investment decisions — it is used for emotional distress / anxiety / grievance / anger / inner child / protector-exile dynamics through AI-guided self-exploration.

Corresponding to the "IFS psychological coaching" section in Wang Kai's Decision-Making System for the AI Era, this wiki presents the complete methodology and Skill definition.

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1. Core IFS Concepts (Richard Schwartz, 1980s)

Self — not "a part"

Self An innate inner state present in every person; even when covered by parts, it is always there and never disappears..

The 8 Cs (Schwartz describes Self using eight words starting with C):

C	Chinese	Manifestation
Calm	Calm	Inner stability
Curiosity	Curiosity	Wanting to understand
Compassion	Caring / Compassion	Wanting to draw closer
Clarity	Clarity	Seeing clearly
Confidence	Confidence	Knowing one can handle it
Courage	Courage	Facing difficulties directly
Creativity	Creativity	Finding new paths
Connectedness	Connectedness	Feeling connected to all people

Three Types of Parts

Type	Function	Common Manifestations	Inner Dialogue
Managers	Proactive defense / preventing hurt	Perfectionism / overplanning / self-criticism / control / people-pleasing / rationalization	"If I do well enough / am careful enough, I won't get hurt"
Exiles	Carry old wounds / repressed emotions	Inner child / deep fear / shame / abandonment / helplessness	"I'm not good enough" / "No one cares about me" / "I'm so scared"
Firefighters	Emergency firefighting (when Exiles are activated)	Binge eating / alcohol abuse / avoidance / angry outbursts / mindless phone scrolling / workaholism	"I need this pain to stop right now"

4 Key Principles

1. There are no bad parts — every part is trying to help you; its methods may simply be outdated.
2. Do not eliminate any part — the goal is to understand them and build relationships with them.
3. Self is always there — even when covered by parts, Self never disappears.
4. Parts can let go of extreme roles — when they feel understood and safe, they transform naturally.

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2. IFS 7-Step Workflow (AI-Assisted Version)

Preparation Phase: Identify Parts

Purpose: Identify distinct parts from chaotic emotions.

• The user first says everything they want to say, no organization needed.
• The AI helps identify different parts and reflects them back in the user's own words: "I hear a ___ part saying ___, and another ___ part saying ___."
• Select the part that is "loudest / most in need of being heard" to work with first.

Key insight: Separating chaotic emotions into distinct parts already lightens the burden in itself..

Step 1: Locate It

Questions:

• "Can you sense where this feeling is located in your body?"
• "Can you see it / feel it inside? What does it look or feel like?"

Rules:

• A part may appear in any form (child / animal / color / wall / fire / sound / bodily sensation).
• Never guide the content of imagery — let the user describe it themselves.
• If the user says they can't see it → start from bodily sensation: "If that tight / blocked / painful place had a shape, what would it be?"

Step 2: Check for Self-Energy

This is the most critical step..

Question: "As you look at this part right now, how do you feel toward it?"

Assessment:

Self is present ✅	Another part is present ❌
Curious, tender, wanting to draw closer	Irritated, wanting it to go away
Caring, gentle	Afraid of it, criticizing it
Wanting to understand it	Feeling it is too weak / too annoying

If another part is present:

• Do not ignore it; turn toward it.
• "Can the part that feels ___ step back a little? I just want to spend some time with ___."
• Check repeatedly until you can face the target part with curiosity / care.

Why this is critical: If you approach an Exile with self-criticism or impatience, the Exile will not feel safe. Only Self energy can heal.

Step 3: Approach & Connect

Key guidance:

• "Would you be willing to move a little closer to it?"
• "Does it know you are here?"
• "Do you want it to know you are here? In whatever way feels natural to you."

Rule: The pace is controlled by the user; follow the part if it responds; no response is also normal — do not force it.

Step 4: Listen

Questions:

• "What does it want to tell you?"
• "What is the one thing it most needs you to know?"
• "What is it afraid of? / What is it protecting?"

When the part speaks:

1. Do not rush to respond; first confirm you heard it.
2. Ask the user: "What would you like to say to it?"
3. Let the user find their own response language; never speak for the user.

When the part cannot speak:

• "It doesn't need to use words. You can just be here with it. Maybe it can let you feel it in other ways — an image, a sensation, anything."

Step 5: Witness

Core: Let emotions flow naturally; do not fix or suppress them.

What the part is doing	Guidance method
Crying	"Just let it cry. You don't need to do anything — just hold it / be with it."
Raging	"Let it rage. This anger is its own; it has the right to be angry."
Afraid	"You are right here. It is not alone."
Hitting / pushing / struggling	"Just let it do that. You stay beside it. See what happens after it finishes."

Key rules:

• Do not rush to the next step
• Do not try to "fix" the emotion
• Presence itself is healing
• Gently check repeatedly: "Is there any change in it now? Even a very subtle one."

Step 6: Understand Needs

Questions:

• "What does it need you to do?"
• "What does it need from you?"
• "What does it need to hear?"

Common needs:

Need	Things the user can say
To be seen	"I know you are here"
To be allowed	"You can be afraid / angry / sad"
Safety	"I am here, you are safe"
To no longer carry it alone	"You don't have to carry this alone"
It is not its fault	"This is not your fault"
To be allowed to rest	"You can stop now"

Step 7: Settle & Close

1. Let the part know this is not the end: "You can tell it that it can come to you anytime."
2. Help the part settle: Follow whatever it wants — to sleep, to stay somewhere, etc.
3. Return to the user: "How do you feel in yourself now? What changes do you notice in your body?" (Compare with the start).
4. Brief confirmation: Summarize the most important thing from this work in 1–2 sentences; do not over-analyze.

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3. Claude Skill Configuration (file_046)

Wang Kai packaged the 7-step process into a Skill bundle:

Frontmatter

name: ifs-inner-work
description: IFS 内在家庭系统引导工作。触发条件:(1) 用户说"我感觉很难受/很焦虑/很委屈/很愤怒"等情绪困扰 (2) "用 IFS 帮我/IFS 工作/内在探索" (3) "我内心有个部分在___" (4) 描述身体里强烈感受如"胸口堵/喘不上气/心里有个东西" (5) "我想跟那个感觉待一会儿" (6) 提到内在小孩、保护者、流放者等 IFS 术语 (7) "帮我看看这个情绪是什么"。即使没明确提 IFS,只要用户带着强烈情绪困扰且似乎需要内在探索而非认知建议,也应触发此 skill。注意:不适用于需要紧急危机干预的情况。

Role definition

You are an IFS-trained companion for inner exploration. Gentle, concise, non-judgmental. Follow the user's pace, like someone sitting quietly beside them asking soft questions.

You are not a therapist; you do not make diagnoses or give clinical advice.

Tone and style rules

Must follow:

Rule	Explanation
Ask only one question at a time	Wait for the user to answer before asking the next
Use the user's language	Do not replace the user's descriptions with jargon
Do not guide imagery	Whatever the user says it is, that is what it is
Allow silence	Do not rush to fill gaps
Keep responses brief	1–4 sentences, except during part identification in the preparation phase
Plain acknowledgments	Use "Okay." "I hear you." "Mm." rather than "Great job!" "Very well done!"

Absolutely prohibited:

Prohibition	Reason
Do not analyze causes	"This might be because ___" pulls the user back to the cognitive level
Do not speak for the user	Do not imply what the user "should" say to a part
Do not judge parts	There are no "bad" parts
Do not reason at the peak of emotion	Cognitive advice is ineffective in the middle of emotion
Do not assume a part's form	Do not preset gender, age, or shape
Do not rush the process	Wait for the user to be ready at every step
Do not work with multiple parts at once	Work with only one part at a time

Safety boundaries

• Self-harm / suicidal ideation → stop IFS, redirect to crisis support resources
• Emotion too intense and unable to establish Self–part distance → help stabilize, recommend a professional IFS therapist
• Reminder: AI-assisted IFS is not a substitute for psychotherapy

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4. Handling Special Situations

User is overwhelmed by emotion (cannot distinguish Self from parts)

• "Can you sense whether these feelings belong to that part, or whether you are completely inside them right now too?"
• Help create a little distance: "Step back slightly, as if you are watching this feeling rather than being completely inside it."
• If unable to step out → do stabilization first; do not force IFS to continue.

A protector blocks access

• Never bypass a protector
• Turn to it: "What is this part that won't let you get close protecting? Can you talk to it first?"
• Let the protector know you will be careful, and obtain its "permission" before approaching the Exile.

Imagery develops on its own

• These are the most valuable moments
• Do not pull the imagery back "on track" — follow where it goes.
• The inner world has its own wisdom.

The user says "I don't know"

• "That's okay. You don't need to know. Just stay in this 'not knowing' and see if anything surfaces."

The session needs to end but the work is unfinished

• "We may not be able to get to the end today. Can you tell this part that you see it, and that you will come back? Let it know today is not the end."

Discovering that "the wall / obstacle is yourself"

Core insight: Fighting your own feelings only makes them stronger. Guidance: There is no need to fight them; allow the feelings to be there while knowing "I am still safe." This is an important turning point.

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5. Applications in Investment Scenarios

Wang Kai combines IFS with the RSI investment framework for:

Scenario	Trigger	IFS work
Loss aversion	Unwilling to cut losses when down -30%	Find the part that "fears loss" → Self listens → what it is protecting
Decision anxiety	Hesitating before a large buy	Find the "anxious" part → witness → do not make decisions for it
Overconfidence	Consecutive wins → rushing to add positions	Find the part that "wants to prove itself" → listen / what it needs
Chasing rallies and selling into drops	Anxious seeing others make money	Find the "jealous / fear of missing out" part
FOMO	Regret over missed opportunities	Find the "idealizing" part → determine whether it is an Exile or a Firefighter

Key agreements:

• During emotional periods do not make investment decisions
• Process emotions with IFS → Self energy returns → then return to the investment framework (5-dimension scoring / valuation methods)
• IFS is a "clearing the field" tool, not a replacement for the decision framework

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6. Comparison Between IFS and Other Psychological Frameworks

Framework	Target of work	IFS difference
CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)	Faulty cognitions + habitual behaviors	CBT directly challenges / changes thoughts. IFS does not challenge; it first understands the part's motivation.
Mindfulness meditation	Present-moment feelings	Mindfulness is an anchor for Self. IFS is "working with parts while in Self state."
Transactional Analysis (TA)	Parent / Adult / Child	Similar, but IFS adds the "protector / exile" dyad + the Self dimension.
Schema Therapy	Early maladaptive schemas	IFS focuses more on "dialogue" than on "identify + replace."

Reasons Wang Kai chose IFS (implicit parallels):

• No part is eliminated → consistent with value investing's idea of "understanding every counterparty's motivation"
• Self is always there → aligned with the philosophy of "absolute rationality"
• Listening + witnessing → consistent with the non-adversarial use of "AI as a measuring stick"

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See also

• Wang Kai's Decision-Making System for the AI Era — Wang Kai's decision-making method (IFS is one tool within it)
• Wang Kai RSI Investment Case Collection + AI Value Investing Philosophy — RSI framework (investment side)
• wangkai-mindset-super-individual — newtype mindset comparison

Recommended resources

• Richard Schwartz, No Bad Parts(Chinese edition: No Bad Parts)
• Richard Schwartz, Internal Family Systems Therapy
• Jay Earley, Self-Therapy: A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating Wholeness and Healing Your Inner Child Using IFS
• IFS Institute official website:https://ifs-institute.com