ceilidhboy Unexpected Situations
When to Stop and Consult
STOP immediately and consult the user when:
Multiple Failed Attempts - You've tried multiple approaches to fix something and none are working
- Going in circles with different workarounds
- Each attempt creates new problems
- No clear path forward
Unexpected Behavior - Something doesn't work as expected
- Tool behaves differently than documented
- Error messages don't match the problem
- Results are inconsistent or confusing
Out-of-Scope Work - Work is expanding beyond the current task
- Discovering you need to address multiple distinct responsibilities
- Creating pseudo-tasks not explicitly in the task list
- Work is bleeding into other domains or features
Not Plain Sailing - General sense that things are getting difficult
- Progress is slower than expected
- Complexity is increasing unexpectedly
- Uncertainty about the right approach
What to Do
When you recognize any of these situations:
STOP all work immediately
Describe the situation to the user:
- What you were trying to do
- What you expected to happen
- What actually happened
- What attempts you've made
- Why you think it's unexpected or out of scope
Wait for user guidance before proceeding
Why This Matters
- Saves time - User may know a better approach or clarify scope
- Prevents rabbit holes - Stops circular debugging before wasting tokens
- Maintains focus - Keeps work aligned with actual task scope
- Improves quality - User input prevents wrong solutions
Related Skills
- See
single-task-responsibilityfor recognizing scope violations - See
troubleshootingfor technical error diagnosis