work

name	work
description	Use when the user says "work", "work end", "work pause", or "work resume" — detects current branch state and routes to the correct work lifecycle skill automatically. "work" alone starts new work or shows the pause stack. "work end" closes the branch. "work pause" saves state. "work resume" shows the stack and returns to a paused branch. Replaces needing to know which lifecycle skill to invoke.

work

Unified entry point for the work lifecycle. Detects state and routes to the correct skill — developer says work to begin, work end to close, work pause to save and switch, work resume to return to paused work.

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Routing

Step 1 — Parse the invocation

Invocation	Route to
work or work start	→ detect state (Step 2)
work end	→ work-end immediately
work pause	→ work-pause immediately
work resume	→ work-resume immediately

Step 2 — Detect state (for work alone)

python3 ~/.claude/skills/project-init/ctx.py

Read WORKSPACE and CURRENT_BRANCH from the output, then check pause stack state:

STACK_FILE="$WORKSPACE/design/.pause-stack"
STACK_DEPTH=$(grep -c "^- branch:" "$STACK_FILE" 2>/dev/null || echo 0)
IS_MAIN=$([ "$CURRENT_BRANCH" = "main" ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")

Detected state	Action
On main, stack empty	→ work-start — begin new work
On main, stack has 1+ entries	→ show stack picker (Step 3)
On a feature branch	→ ask: end or pause? (Step 4)

Step 3 — Stack picker (on main, 1+ paused branches)

Show paused branches with age and note. Adapt phrasing to stack depth:

You have <N> paused branch(es):
  1. <branch>  #<issue>  paused <duration> ago
  2. <branch>  #<issue>  paused <duration> ago   (if N > 1)
  ...

Resume one, or start something new? (1 / 2 / ... / new)

• Number → work-resume with that branch pre-selected
• new → work-start

If stack depth > 3, prefix with: ⚠️ Stack has <N> paused branches — consider closing some before adding more.

Step 4 — On feature branch: ask once

"You're on <branch-name>. What do you want to do?

1. end — close this branch, merge, push, write handover, return to main
2. pause — commit WIP, push to stack, switch to main (resume later)
3. wrap — end session but keep branch open (write handover for next session)"

Route to work-end, work-pause, or handover based on answer.

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Skill Chaining

Routes to:

• work-start — when beginning new work from main
• work-resume — when returning to a paused branch from main
• work-end — when closing a completed branch (includes full wrap + HANDOFF.md)
• work-pause — when saving state to switch to something else
• handover — when ending the session but keeping the branch open (mid-work wrap)

This skill does not implement the lifecycle itself — it detects state and delegates. All logic lives in the individual lifecycle skills.