How do I install the Tell Dont Ask skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add amadeus-dlc/tell-dont-ask in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

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Which AI agents work with Tell Dont Ask?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Tell Dont Ask free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Tell Dont Ask?

amadeus-dlc (@amadeus-dlc) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Tell Dont Ask by amadeus-dlc — Agent Skill

Name: Tell Dont Ask
Author: amadeus-dlc

Tell Dont Ask

Use when reviewing or refactoring code that queries object state and makes decisions outside the object that owns the data. Moves behavior to the responsible object to improve encapsulation. Trigger for getter misuse, Feature Envy, Tell Don't Ask, encapsulation improvements, or moving responsibility into domain objects.

amadeus-dlc Updated Sep 17, 2026

File contents

Tell, Don't Ask

Tell the object what you want done; do not ask for its state and make the decision elsewhere.

Workflow

Find code that gets state, branches on it, then updates or commands the same object.
Name the intention behind the external decision.
Move that behavior to the object that owns the state.
Replace getters with intention-revealing methods where possible.
Keep DTO, serialization, logging, and UI projection exceptions explicit.

Checks

Getter plus if plus setter is a strong smell.
Feature Envy means behavior is closer to another object's data than its own.
Avoid adding anemic pass-through methods; move real decisions.

Reference

Read references/patterns.md for refactoring patterns.

Detailed Reference

For non-trivial implementation, review, or refactoring work, read references/details.md before giving final guidance. It contains the detailed rules, examples, smells, and migration notes that do not belong in the short invocation body.

Output

Return the ask pattern, the moved behavior, revised API, and code changes.

Frequently asked questions