| name | night-shift |
| description | Automated overnight task planning and execution engine for EverClaw. Generates prioritized action lists at 9:30 PM CST for the 10 PM–6 AM window, requires human approval before execution, enforces safety boundaries on allowed task types, and updates Mission Control dashboard at shift end. Use when planning overnight autonomous work, configuring night shift cron jobs, reviewing morning progress reports, or setting task approval policies. |
Night Shift Skill
Purpose: Generate actionable overnight tasks based on the day's projects and objectives.
How It Works
1. Cron Job (Every Night at 9:30 PM CST)
- Triggers the night shift planning process
- Reviews the day's context (projects, objectives, conversations)
- Generates a prioritized list of actions for the 10 PM - 6 AM window
2. Action List Generation
The night shift action list should include:
- Tasks that can be completed autonomously
- Research tasks
- Content creation
- Code/documentation work
- Prep for the next day
3. Human Review (Before 10 PM)
- List is presented to the user for approval
- User can approve, modify, or reject tasks
- Only approved tasks are executed during night shift
Night Shift Execution
Time Window: 10:00 PM - 6:00 AM CST
Task Types Approved for Night Shift:
- Research — Web searches, documentation review, competitive analysis
- Content Creation — Writing drafts, marketing copy, documentation
- Code Tasks — Non-breaking changes, refactoring, documentation
- Prep Work — Scheduling cron jobs, preparing agendas, organizing files
- Monitoring — Watching for PR reviews, checking discussion responses
Task Types NOT Approved for Night Shift:
- Breaking Changes — Any code that could break production
- External Communications — Sending emails, tweets, DMs
- Financial Transactions — Any money-moving actions
- Deletions — Deleting files, branches, or data
- Security-Sensitive — Key rotations, permission changes
Cron Job Setup
Output Format
Night Shift Action Plan (Generated at 9:30 PM)
🌙 NIGHT SHIFT ACTION PLAN
Date: [DATE]
Time Window: 10:00 PM - 6:00 AM CST
## Projects in Progress
- [Project 1]: [Status]
- [Project 2]: [Status]
## Proposed Actions
### Priority 1 (Can Complete Tonight)
1. [Task] — [Estimated time] — [Why it matters]
2. [Task] — [Estimated time] — [Why it matters]
### Priority 2 (Research/Prep)
1. [Task] — [Estimated time] — [Why it matters]
2. [Task] — [Estimated time] — [Why it matters]
### Priority 3 (Nice to Have)
1. [Task] — [Estimated time] — [Why it matters]
## Actions NOT Approved for Night Shift
- [Task] — [Reason: requires external communication]
- [Task] — [Reason: security-sensitive]
---
Please review and approve. Reply with:
- "Approve all" — Execute all priority 1+2
- "Approve [numbers]" — Execute specific tasks
- "Modify: [instructions]" — Adjust the plan
- "Reject" — No night shift tonight
Setup Instructions
To enable Night Shift:
- Create the cron job:
30 21 * * * /path/to/night-shift-planner.sh
- Or use OpenClaw's cron system:
openclaw cron add --name "Night Shift Planning" --schedule "30 21 * * *" --message "Generate night shift action plan"
Example Use Cases
Example 1: Marketing Campaign Prep
Day shift: Discuss viral narratives for EverClaw flavors
Night shift: Write social media thread templates for each flavor
Example 2: Code Documentation
Day shift: Review Docker PR for EverClaw
Night shift: Write comprehensive README updates
Example 3: Research Tasks
Day shift: Discuss EverClaw accelerator concept
Night shift: Research existing accelerators, compile comparison table
End of Night Shift: Mission Control Update
At 6:00 AM CST, before ending the night shift:
-
Run the Mission Control dashboard data generator:
cd ~/.openclaw/workspace && node mission-control/generate-data.mjs
-
This updates mission-control/dashboard-data.json and embeds data into index.html
-
The dashboard includes:
- Completed tasks from memory files
- Updated goal progress
- Activity feed with night shift actions
-
The user can review the dashboard at file://~/.openclaw/workspace/mission-control/index.html
This gives the user a rich UI view of overnight progress in addition to the Signal summary.
Notes
- Night shift is optional — the user must approve before execution
- Tasks that require external communication are never automated
- All night shift actions are logged and reported in the morning
- If the user doesn't respond by 10 PM, night shift is cancelled by default
- Mission Control dashboard is updated at end of night shift (6 AM)