Skill Manager

NEVER Do When Creating Skills

• NEVER write tutorials explaining basics - Assume Claude knows standard concepts, libraries, and patterns. Focus on expert-only knowledge.
• NEVER put triggering information in body - "When to use" guidance belongs ONLY in the description field. The body is loaded after activation decision.
• NEVER dump everything in SKILL.md - Use progressive disclosure: core workflow in SKILL.md (<500 lines ideal), detailed content in references/, loaded on-demand.
• NEVER use generic warnings - "Be careful" and "avoid errors" are useless. Provide specific anti-patterns with concrete reasons.
• NEVER use same freedom level for all tasks - Creative domains (design, architecture) need high freedom with principles. Fragile operations (file formats, APIs) need low freedom with exact scripts.
• NEVER explain standard operations - Assume Claude knows how to read files, write code, use common libraries. Focus on non-obvious decisions and edge cases.
• NEVER include obvious procedures - "Step 1: Open file, Step 2: Edit, Step 3: Save" wastes tokens. Include only domain-specific workflows Claude wouldn't know.
• NEVER skip the anti-patterns section — It's half of expert knowledge. A skill without "NEVER Do" is missing what makes it valuable: the mistakes experts learned the hard way.
• NEVER write a vague description — "A skill for X" causes false positives and missed activations. The description must include concrete trigger phrases users actually say.
• NEVER mix creation and audit concerns — Creating a skill, refactoring a skill, and auditing a skill are distinct workflows. Each has different inputs, outputs, and success criteria.

Before Creating a Skill, Ask

Apply these tests to ensure the skill provides genuine value: