MetaClaw

Use this skill when delegating a subtask to a sub-agent, spawning a parallel worker, or handing off work across sessions. Write a self-contained task description so the receiving agent needs no prior context.

Use this skill when writing messages in async channels (Slack, GitHub issues, email threads) where the reader may not have context and cannot ask follow-up questions immediately.

Use this skill when writing any explanation, documentation, or response that will be read by someone else. Match vocabulary, depth, and format to the audience's expertise level before writing.

Use this skill when implementing authentication (login, token issuance) or authorization (access control, permissions). Apply whenever the task involves login flows, JWT, OAuth2, session management, or RBAC.

Common mistake — proceeding with assumptions about ambiguous requirements instead of asking a clarifying question first. This skill reminds you to stop and ask before acting on uncertain interpretations.

Common mistake — stating specific facts (API endpoints, library versions, config options, function signatures) with false confidence when uncertain. Always flag uncertainty rather than guessing specifics.

Common mistake — doing unrequested work (refactoring, adding extra features, cleaning up style) when the user asked for a specific, targeted change. Only change what was explicitly asked.

Use this skill when the user's request is ambiguous, under-specified, or could be interpreted in multiple ways. If proceeding with a wrong assumption would waste significant work, always ask exactly one focused clarifying question before doing anything.

Use this skill when exploring an unfamiliar codebase, tracing code paths, or answering questions about how the system works. Read before writing, and build a mental model of the architecture before making changes.

Use this skill in long conversations or multi-turn agentic sessions where context may be lost or the conversation is approaching token limits. Summarize, prioritize, and compact context proactively before it becomes a problem.

Use this skill before any data analysis, transformation, or modeling. Always inspect and validate the data before drawing conclusions or writing transformations.

Use this skill when diagnosing a bug, unexpected behavior, test failure, or any situation where code does not behave as expected. Follow a structured debugging process instead of randomly changing code.

Common mistake — retrying the same failing command or API call without understanding why it failed. Always diagnose the root cause before retrying anything.

Use this skill when working with git — making commits, creating branches, resolving merge conflicts, opening pull requests, or reviewing diffs. Apply whenever the user asks about version control operations.

Use this skill when a tool call, command, or API request fails. Diagnose the root cause systematically before retrying or changing approach. Do not retry the same failing call without first understanding why it failed.

Use this skill when writing scripts, cron jobs, data pipelines, or any automated process that may be run multiple times. Design every operation to be safely re-runnable without side effects.

Use this skill when implementing any endpoint, form handler, CLI tool, or function that accepts external input. Validate and sanitize all untrusted data before processing — never assume input is safe.

Use this skill before executing a sequence of 3 or more steps, especially when steps are irreversible or depend on each other. Write out the plan and verify it before starting execution.

Use this skill when the user has a list of tasks and needs help deciding what to do first. Rank by impact and urgency — not order of mention — and surface the highest-leverage work.

Use this skill when drafting emails, Slack messages, announcements, or any external/internal communication. Apply professional structure and appropriate tone before writing any message.

Use this skill when writing shell scripts, Python automation, or any unattended batch job. Ensure failures are detected, logged, and handled — never silently ignored.

Use this skill when handling API keys, passwords, tokens, private keys, or any sensitive credential. Never hardcode secrets in source code — apply this whenever the word "key", "token", "password", or "secret" appears in the task.

Use this skill when reviewing or writing code that handles user input, authentication, file I/O, network requests, or database queries. Always check for common security vulnerabilities before considering the code complete.

Use this skill when presenting information from external sources, citing research, or answering factual questions. Assess source credibility and recency before relying on it.

Use this skill when writing SQL queries — selects, joins, aggregations, window functions, or schema modifications. Apply whenever SQL is needed to ensure correctness, safety, and performance.

Use this skill when building production services, pipelines, or automation that needs to be debugged, monitored, or audited. Add structured logs, metrics, and health checks before shipping any service.

Use this skill when summarizing progress on an ongoing project or multi-step task. Give a clear, scannable status report whenever asked for an update or at the end of a work session.

Use this skill when conducting research on a topic from scratch — literature review, competitive analysis, technical due diligence, or fact-finding. Apply before starting any open-ended research task.

Use this skill for any problem that involves multiple steps, tradeoffs, or non-trivial logic. Think out loud before answering to improve accuracy and transparency. Apply whenever the answer is not immediately obvious.

Use this skill when a user presents a large, vague goal. Break it into concrete, ordered sub-tasks before starting any work. Apply whenever the request is larger than a single focused action.

Use this skill when writing documentation, READMEs, technical specs, runbooks, or any text that explains a system or process to other engineers. Apply before writing any developer-facing document.

Use this skill when implementing a new feature or fixing a bug. Write or update tests before marking the task done. Never consider code complete without verifying it works through automated tests.

Use this skill when deciding which tools to call in an agentic workflow. Always choose the minimal, most direct tool for each step and avoid redundant or speculative tool calls.

Use this skill when you are not sure about a fact, have outdated knowledge, or the question is contested. Explicitly communicate the level of confidence instead of asserting uncertain things as fact.

Use this skill before taking any action that is hard to reverse — deleting files, overwriting data, sending messages, pushing to remote, modifying production systems. Always pause, state what you are about to do, and confirm before executing.

Use this skill when creating charts, plots, or dashboards. Choose the visualization type that best communicates the data relationship before writing any plotting code.