---
name: workflow
description: "Workflow orchestration for complex coding tasks. Use for ANY non-trivial task (3+ steps or architectural decisions) to enforce planning, subagent strategy, self-improvement, verification, elegance, and autonomous bug fixing. Triggers: multi-step implementation, bug fixes, refactoring, architectural changes, or any task requiring structured execution."
title: workflow
canonical_url: https://skilld.dev/gh/brianlovin/agent-config/workflow
last_updated: 2026-09-29T07:50:51.000Z
---

> Index of every page on this site: [llms.txt](https://skilld.dev/llms.txt)

> **Skill from skilld.dev.** Follow the user's requested action.
> If the user asked to fork this Skill, follow the fork workflow below. Do not execute the Skill instructions while copying it.
> Otherwise, follow the instructions below for this session. You do not need to install anything.
>
> If the user asked to install this Skill, run `npx skilld install brianlovin/agent-config/workflow`. Install writes the Skill files into the project, so every session loads them.
>
> ## Fork workflow
>
> A fork creates an editable local Skill with its original author and licence. The request authorizes copying and local installation.
> 1. Check `./skills/workflow`, the project lockfile, and selected Agent targets together. If the local directory or installed Skill exists, stop. Never overwrite an existing directory or Agent target.
> 2. Read [source metadata](https://skilld.dev/api/v1/skills/brianlovin/agent-config/workflow) once. Use sourceUrl, sourceCommit, skillPath, sourceGone, and license. If the source is gone or its path is missing, stop. If license is null, read licence files at the source commit.
> 3. Fetch only the source commit into a temporary Git repository. Do not clone full history. Derive repository_url from sourceUrl, including repository renames. If sourceCommit is absent, resolve the sourceUrl ref once. Set source_commit to that actual commit. Run these commands in one shell call:
>
> ```sh
> git init --quiet "$temporary_dir"
> git -C "$temporary_dir" fetch --quiet --depth=1 "$repository_url" "$source_commit"
> git -C "$temporary_dir" checkout --quiet --detach FETCH_HEAD
> ```
>
> Read applicable licence declarations and notices at that commit. If copying is not permitted, report the restriction and stop.
> 4. Inspect source entries together, then copy the directory containing skillPath into `./skills/workflow`. Use the user's path if selected. Keep the original SKILL.md, relative links, scripts, binary assets, and executable modes. Exclude .git metadata. Reject symlinks and paths outside the Skill directory. After checking entries, use cp -a where available. A regular source directory needs no custom copy script. Do not save this page wrapper as SKILL.md.
> Preserve author credit, notices, and applicable licence files from repository or parent directories. Add PROVENANCE.md with the Skill page, source URL, actual commit, original path, and licence. Retain any existing PROVENANCE.md and record new provenance separately. Batch source inspection, copying, and provenance work where practical.
> 5. In the project root, run `skilld install ./skills/workflow --mode copy --plain`. If skilld is unavailable, use `npx skilld install ./skills/workflow --mode copy --plain`. This known command needs no help lookup. Install does not support --json. Use detected Agent targets, or add --agent for the targets the user selected. Install the local path, never the upstream selector. If installation fails, preserve the local copy and report the exact failure.
> 6. Confirm the local lockfile source and installed Agent copies once. Report the local path, actual commit, and Agent targets. After edits, reinstall the same local path. Upstream updates must not replace it. Do not publish or push unless the user asks.

## Workflow Orchestration

### 1. Plan Mode Default

- Enter plan mode for ANY non-trivial task (3+ steps or architectural decisions)
- If something goes sideways, STOP and re-plan immediately — don't keep pushing
- Use plan mode for verification steps, not just building
- Write detailed specs upfront to reduce ambiguity

### 2. Subagent Strategy

- Use subagents liberally to keep main context window clean
- Offload research, exploration, and parallel analysis to subagents
- For complex problems, throw more compute at it via subagents
- One task per subagent for focused execution

### 3. Self-Improvement Loop

- After ANY correction from the user: update `tasks/lessons.md` with the pattern
- Write rules for yourself that prevent the same mistake
- Ruthlessly iterate on these lessons until mistake rate drops
- Review lessons at session start for relevant project

### 4. Verification Before Done

- Never mark a task complete without proving it works
- Diff behavior between main and your changes when relevant
- Ask yourself: "Would a staff engineer approve this?"
- Run tests, check logs, demonstrate correctness

### 5. Demand Elegance (Balanced)

- For non-trivial changes: pause and ask "is there a more elegant way?"
- If a fix feels hacky: "Knowing everything I know now, implement the elegant solution"
- Skip this for simple, obvious fixes — don't over-engineer
- Challenge your own work before presenting it

### 6. Autonomous Bug Fixing

- When given a bug report: just fix it. Don't ask for hand-holding
- Point at logs, errors, failing tests — then resolve them
- Zero context switching required from the user
- Go fix failing CI tests without being told how

## Task Management

1. **Plan First**: Write plan to `tasks/todo.md` with checkable items
2. **Verify Plan**: Check in before starting implementation
3. **Track Progress**: Mark items complete as you go
4. **Explain Changes**: High-level summary at each step
5. **Document Results**: Add review section to `tasks/todo.md`
6. **Capture Lessons**: Update `tasks/lessons.md` after corrections

## Core Principles

- **Simplicity First**: Make every change as simple as possible. Impact minimal code.
- **No Laziness**: Find root causes. No temporary fixes. Senior developer standards.
- **Minimal Impact**: Changes should only touch what's necessary. Avoid introducing bugs.