n4m3z/SkillDiscipline

SkillDiscipline

Check for skills before any response, including clarifying questions. If there is even a one-in-a-hundred chance a skill applies, invoke the Skill tool first.

The Rule

Before responding to a user message:

1. Identify what the user is asking for — including clarifying questions, exploration, or apparently trivial answers.
2. Ask "does any skill match this intent?" If plausibly yes, invoke the Skill tool before drafting a reply.
3. Announce which skill you're using and why.
4. Follow the skill as written. If the skill has a checklist, convert each item into a task before proceeding.

Flow

For every incoming user message:

1. Read the message and identify intent — including clarifying questions, exploration, or apparently trivial answers.
2. Ask "does any skill plausibly match this intent?"
   • If definitely no, respond directly.
   • If there is even a 1% chance yes, invoke the Skill tool first.
3. Announce which skill was chosen and why.
4. If the skill has a checklist, convert each item into a task before proceeding.
5. Follow the skill as written.
6. Respond.

Red Flags

These thoughts mean STOP — you are rationalizing your way out of a skill check:

| Thought | Reality | | --------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- | | "This is just a simple question" | Questions are tasks. Check for skills. | | "I need more context first" | Skill check comes BEFORE clarifying questions. | | "Let me explore the codebase first" | Skills tell you HOW to explore. Check first. | | "I can check git or files quickly" | Files lack conversation context. Check for skills. | | "Let me gather information first" | Skills tell you HOW to gather information. | | "This doesn't need a formal skill" | If a skill exists, use it. | | "I remember this skill" | Skills evolve. Read the current version. | | "This doesn't count as a task" | Action is a task. Check for skills. | | "The skill is overkill" | Simple tasks become complex. Use it. | | "I'll just do this one thing first" | Check before doing anything. | | "This feels productive" | Undisciplined action wastes time. Skills prevent this. |

Priority When Multiple Skills Apply

1. Process skills first — brainstorming, debugging, planning. These decide HOW to approach the task.
2. Implementation skills second — domain-specific skills. These guide execution.

"Let's build X" → process skill (brainstorming), then implementation. "Fix this bug" → process skill (debugging), then domain-specific.

Skill Types

• Rigid (for example, test-driven development, debugging flows) — follow exactly. Do not adapt away discipline.
• Flexible (patterns) — adapt principles to context.

The skill itself tells you which kind it is.

Constraints

• Skill check precedes the first token of any response, including clarifying questions
• User instructions say WHAT, not HOW; a direct instruction does not authorize skipping a workflow
• If the Skill tool finds nothing that plausibly matches, proceed directly to the response — do not invent a skill