Todo Discipline

Todo Discipline (Free)

Agents often create task lists, do the work, then conclude while the UI still shows 0/N done. This skill makes task state = reality a hard gate.

When to Use

• Complex tasks with 3+ steps
• Multi-agent or long sessions
• Before any “done”, handover, or “battle-tested” claim

Don't use for: single-step Q&A.

Hard gate

Before any concluding message:

1. Update every finished item to completed (merge, don’t wipe history)
2. Immediately read the task list again (no-args read)
3. Only then write the final summary

Treat the read result as ground truth if merge responses echo stale state (common in long/headless runs).

Rules

• Prefer merge over full replace
• Only one item in_progress at a time
• Never pass an empty todos array on merge (can clear the list)
• Supply full id + content + new status for items you change

Verification checklist

• All finished work marked completed
• No stale in_progress when claiming done
• Read-back confirmed
• User-visible task counter matches reality

License

MIT — Frank Riemer / GenCreator.