Commit

Commit workflow that ensures quality gates pass and changelog is updated before committing.

When to Use

• After /code-review passes with no critical issues
• When asked to commit, save, or wrap up work
• Before creating a PR

Workflow

┌─────────────────────┐
│ 1. Run quality      │
│    checks           │
│    ty → ruff → pytest
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
          ▼
    ┌─────────────┐
    │ All pass?   │───No──→ STOP. Fix issues first.
    └─────┬───────┘
          │Yes
          ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ 2. Update CHANGELOG │
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ 3. Stage + Commit   │
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ 4. Verify success   │
└─────────────────────┘

Step 1: Run Quality Checks

Run in this order. Stop on first failure.

ty                    # Type checking
ruff check .          # Linting
ruff format --check . # Format check
pytest                # Tests

If any fail: Fix the issue. Do not proceed to commit.

No exceptions:

• "It's a flaky test" → Fix the test or mark it properly
• "I manually tested it" → Automated tests must pass
• "We can fix it later" → Later never comes. Fix now.

Step 2: Update CHANGELOG

Create or update CHANGELOG.md in project root.

Format:

# Changelog

## [Unreleased]

### Added
- New feature description

### Changed
- Modified behavior description

### Fixed
- Bug fix description

### Removed
- Removed feature description

Rules:

• Add entry under [Unreleased] section
• Use appropriate category (Added/Changed/Fixed/Removed)
• Be concise but specific - what changed and why it matters
• If CHANGELOG.md doesn't exist, create it

Step 3: Stage and Commit

git add -A  # Or specific files if preferred
git commit -m "$(cat <<'EOF'
Short summary in imperative mood (max 50 chars)

Longer description if needed. Explain what changed and why.
Keep lines under 72 characters.

Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
EOF
)"

Commit message guidelines:

• First line: imperative mood, max 50 chars ("Add feature" not "Added feature")
• Blank line after summary
• Body: explain what and why, not how
• Reference issues if applicable

Step 4: Verify Success

git status  # Should show clean working tree
git log -1  # Verify commit message looks correct

Red Flags - STOP

• Tests failing → Fix before commit
• Linting errors → Fix before commit
• Type errors → Fix before commit
• No changelog entry → Add one
• Vague commit message → Rewrite it

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Fix
Skipping checks "to save time"	Checks catch bugs. Run them.
Committing with failing tests	Fix the test or the code
Forgetting changelog	Always update before commit
"WIP" or "fix" commit messages	Write meaningful messages
Not verifying after commit	Always check git status/log