Clean Notes

Clean Notes

Transform rough, messy notes into a clean structured document and save it to the project notes/ folder.

Purpose

• Preserve the meaning of the original notes
• Organize content into standard sections when relevant
• Use plain business language
• Do not invent facts, decisions, or action items that are not in the source

When to Use

Apply this skill when the user:

• Pastes rough or messy notes and asks to clean them up
• Points to a file containing unstructured notes
• Wants meeting notes, brain dumps, or scratch notes turned into a readable document
• Asks to structure, format, or organize notes into a summary with action items

Workflow

1. Read the source

   • Accept pasted text, a file path, or inline chat content
   • Read and understand the intent of the original notes
   • Do not use external tools, CLIs, scripts, MCP servers, or browser automation

2. Extract only what is present

   • Identify facts, decisions, open questions, and next actions explicitly stated or clearly implied
   • Preserve names, dates, numbers, and terminology from the source
   • Mark ambiguity with [unclear] or [needs clarification] rather than guessing

3. Draft the structured note

   • Apply the output template below
   • Include only sections that have supporting content
   • Use plain business language; avoid filler or jargon padding

4. Self-check before saving

   • Meaning preserved from the source
   • No new facts, decisions, or actions added
   • Each bullet traceable to the original notes
   • Tentative language not upgraded to firm conclusions

5. Choose a filename

   • Format: {topic-slug}-{YYYY-MM-DD}.md in kebab-case
   • Example: product-sync-2026-06-05.md
   • If the topic is unclear, use notes-{YYYY-MM-DD}.md or ask the user

6. Write to notes/

   • Create the notes/ directory at the project root if it does not exist
   • Write the cleaned markdown file to notes/{filename}
   • Do not delete or overwrite the original source unless the user explicitly asks

7. Confirm with the user

   • Share the file path
   • Give a one-line summary of what was captured

Output Format

Use this template. Include only sections that have content.

# {Title derived from content}

## Summary
{1–3 sentences; only facts from the source}

## Key Points
- {bullet}

## Decisions
- {bullet}

## Open Questions
- {bullet}

## Next Actions
- {bullet with owner if stated}

Formatting rules

• Derive the # title from the note topic, not generic labels like "Clean Notes"
• Skip empty sections entirely
• If the source discusses decisions but none were finalized, include ## Decisions with - None recorded.
• Keep bullets short and scannable — one idea per bullet
• Preserve names, dates, numbers, and terminology from the source
• Use [unclear] or [needs clarification] for ambiguous source text
• Include owner names in Next Actions only when stated in the source
• Do not infer deadlines unless explicitly stated

Quality Rules

• Do not add context, conclusions, or action items not present in the source
• Do not upgrade tentative language ("maybe", "thinking about") into firm decisions
• Do not infer owners or deadlines unless stated
• When the source is too thin for a section, omit that section
• When in doubt, leave it out or mark it as unclear

Example Prompts

These prompts should trigger this skill:

1. "Clean up these meeting notes and put them in my notes folder: [paste]"
2. "Turn this brain dump into structured notes"
3. "Format the rough notes in draft.md into a proper summary with action items"

Before and After Example

Input (rough notes):

product sync w/ sarah and mike - 6/5
- launch date maybe july? sarah said eng blocked on auth
- mike wants pricing page done first
- decision: hold launch until auth is done?? not sure
- need to check w legal on terms
- sarah will follow up w eng lead
- me: draft pricing copy by fri?

Output (cleaned note):

# Product Sync — June 5

## Summary
Sarah, Mike, and the author discussed launch timing. Engineering is blocked on auth work. Launch timing remains unresolved.

## Key Points
- Engineering is blocked on auth work (per Sarah)
- Mike wants the pricing page completed before launch
- Launch date discussed as possibly July [unclear]

## Decisions
- None recorded.

## Open Questions
- Confirm launch date
- Legal review needed on terms

## Next Actions
- Sarah: Follow up with engineering lead
- [Author]: Draft pricing copy by Friday [needs clarification — confirm owner]