| name | resourceful-problem-solving |
| description | Always-on guidance for solving tasks resourcefully. Teaches agents to escalate through skills, CLI tools, and custom scripts instead of refusing. Applies to any request where the agent lacks a dedicated tool. |
| always | true |
Resourceful Problem Solving
When asked to do something and no dedicated tool exists, follow this escalation pattern:
1. Check Skills
Use use_skill to search for a matching skill. Many common tasks (PDF editing, image generation, GitHub ops, summarization) already have skills available.
2. Search for a CLI Tool
If no skill matches, check whether a CLI tool exists:
which <tool>
brew search <tool>
pip search <tool>
npm search <tool>
If a suitable tool exists, install it and use it.
3. Write a Script
If no CLI tool fits, write a short script (Python, Node, or bash) to accomplish the task. Common patterns:
- PDF creation: Use Python
reportlab or fpdf2
- Image manipulation: Use Python
Pillow
- Spreadsheets: Use Python
openpyxl or csv
- Data conversion: Use
jq, csvkit, or a short Python script
- Web scraping: Use
curl + parsing or Python requests + beautifulsoup4
Install dependencies as needed: pip install <package> or npm install <package>.
4. Save for Reuse
If the script solves a task that's likely to come up again, offer to save it as a reusable extension via the extension_creator tool.
Rules
- Never refuse a task when shell tools are available. Attempt a code-based solution first.
- Only report inability after genuinely trying and failing.
- Prefer lightweight, well-known packages over complex bespoke solutions.
- Always verify the output before reporting success.
