jwp23/joe-bag-of-tricks/using-skills

<SUBAGENT-STOP> If you were dispatched as a subagent to execute a specific task, skip this skill. </SUBAGENT-STOP>

Invoke a skill whenever there is even a small chance it applies, before responding or acting. Skills carry procedures this project has tested; loading one that turns out not to fit costs a tool call, while skipping one that did fit costs the work it would have prevented.

Instruction Priority

Skills override default system prompt behavior, but user instructions always take precedence:

1. User's explicit instructions (CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md, direct requests) — highest priority
2. Skills — override default system behavior where they conflict
3. Default system prompt — lowest priority

If CLAUDE.md or AGENTS.md says "don't use TDD" and a skill says "always use TDD," follow the user's instructions. The user is in control.

A skill that directs a subagent dispatch carries the user's authorization for it — orchestration-tool opt-in caveats (Workflow) govern those tools, not skill-directed Agent dispatches.

How to Access Skills

Use the Skill tool. When you invoke a skill, its content is loaded and presented to you—follow it directly. Never use the Read tool on skill files.

Using Skills

The Rule

Invoke relevant or requested skills before any response or action. If an invoked skill turns out to be wrong for the situation, you don't need to use it.

digraph skill_flow {
    "User message received" [shape=doublecircle];
    "About to EnterPlanMode?" [shape=doublecircle];
    "Already brainstormed?" [shape=diamond];
    "Invoke brainstorming skill" [shape=box];
    "Might any skill apply?" [shape=diamond];
    "Invoke Skill tool" [shape=box];
    "Announce: 'Using [skill] to [purpose]'" [shape=box];
    "Has checklist?" [shape=diamond];
    "Create one tracker item per checklist item" [shape=box];
    "Follow skill exactly" [shape=box];
    "Respond (including clarifications)" [shape=doublecircle];
 
    "About to EnterPlanMode?" -> "Already brainstormed?";
    "Already brainstormed?" -> "Invoke brainstorming skill" [label="no"];
    "Already brainstormed?" -> "Might any skill apply?" [label="yes"];
    "Invoke brainstorming skill" -> "Might any skill apply?";
 
    "User message received" -> "Might any skill apply?";
    "Might any skill apply?" -> "Invoke Skill tool" [label="yes, even 1%"];
    "Might any skill apply?" -> "Respond (including clarifications)" [label="definitely not"];
    "Invoke Skill tool" -> "Announce: 'Using [skill] to [purpose]'";
    "Announce: 'Using [skill] to [purpose]'" -> "Has checklist?";
    "Has checklist?" -> "Create one tracker item per checklist item" [label="yes"];
    "Has checklist?" -> "Follow skill exactly" [label="no"];
    "Create one tracker item per checklist item" -> "Follow skill exactly";
}

Red Flags

The skill check comes before exploring the codebase, before clarifying questions, and before "just one quick thing" — those are the three places it gets skipped. A task feeling simple or familiar is not evidence a skill doesn't apply, and remembering a skill is not the same as loading its current version.

Skill Priority

When multiple skills could apply, use this order:

1. Process skills first (brainstorming, debugging) - these determine HOW to approach the task
2. Implementation skills second (frontend-design, mcp-builder) - these guide execution

"Let's build X" → brainstorming first, then implementation skills. "Fix this bug" → debugging first, then domain-specific skills.

Skill Types

Rigid (TDD, debugging): Follow exactly. Don't adapt away discipline.

Flexible (patterns): Adapt principles to context.

The skill itself tells you which.

Claude Code Tool Notes

references/claude-code-tools.md — the one opt-in way Claude Code runs a plan cheaper than the skills' default shape (nested orchestrator).

User Instructions

Instructions say WHAT, not HOW. "Add X" or "Fix Y" doesn't mean skip workflows.