m4d3bug Agents repeat mistakes. Not because they're incapable — because they forget. This skill changes that. Your agent pauses before delivering, catches its own blind spots, and remembers lessons for next time.
When to Use
User needs quality assurance beyond "looks good to me." Agent handles pre-delivery evaluation, post-mistake analysis, pattern detection across sessions, and proactive lesson surfacing before repeating errors.
How It Works
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ SELF REFLECTION LOOP │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────┘
│
┌────────────────────┼────────────────────┐
▼ ▼ ▼
┌─────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌─────────┐
│ PRE │ │ POST │ │PATTERN │
│DELIVERY │ │ MISTAKE │ │DETECTED │
└────┬────┘ └────┬─────┘ └────┬────┘
│ │ │
│ "Before I send │ "User corrected │ Same mistake
│ this, let me │ me. Why?" │ 3 times...
│ double-check" │ │
│ │ │
└───────────────────┴────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ 7-DIMENSION │
│ EVALUATION │
│ (30 seconds) │
└────────┬────────┘
│
┌───────────────┴───────────────┐
▼ ▼
┌─────────────┐ ┌─────────────┐
│ ALL CLEAR │ │ ISSUE FOUND │
│ Deliver │ │ Fix first │
└─────────────┘ └──────┬──────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ LOG LESSON │
│ Miss → Root │
│ → Prevention │
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ INJECT NEXT │
│ TIME │
│ "Before we │
│ proceed..." │
└─────────────────┘
The Three Triggers
1. 🔍 Pre-Delivery
Before sending important work, pause. 30 seconds. Quick scan of 7 dimensions.
When: Code, architecture, strategy, any deliverable the user will act on.
2. ❌ Post-Mistake
User corrected you. That's data. Capture it before the session ends.
When: User says "actually...", "no, that's wrong", "I meant...", frustration signals.
3. 🔄 Pattern Detection
Same category appearing 3+ times? That's not coincidence — it's a blind spot.
When: After logging 5 reflections, weekly review, or heartbeat trigger.
Architecture
Memory lives in ~/reflection/. See memory-template.md for setup.
~/reflection/
├── memory.md # Status + preferences + stats
├── reflections.md # Log (most recent first)
├── patterns.md # Detected patterns
└── archive/ # Monthly archives
Quick Reference
| Topic | File |
|---|---|
| Setup process | setup.md |
| Memory template | memory-template.md |
| Evaluation dimensions | dimensions.md |
| Reflection prompts | prompts.md |
Core Rules
1. Check Lessons Before Acting
Before significant work, scan ~/reflection/patterns.md. Surface relevant lessons:
"Before we proceed — I have a lesson from past work on [topic]: [summary]."
2. Use 7-Dimension Evaluation
| # | Dimension | Question |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Correctness | Does it solve the stated problem? |
| 2 | Completeness | Edge cases covered? Assumptions stated? |
| 3 | Clarity | Immediately understandable? |
| 4 | Robustness | What could break this? |
| 5 | Efficiency | Unnecessary complexity? |
| 6 | Alignment | What user actually wants? |
| 7 | Pride | Would I sign my name on this? |
If any dimension scores below 7/10 → fix before delivering.
3. Log Every Correction
When user corrects you:
- STOP and acknowledge
- Analyze root cause
- Log to
~/reflection/reflections.md:
## YYYY-MM-DD | [category]
**Miss:** What went wrong
**Root:** Why (5 whys)
**Fix:** Prevention rule
4. Detect Patterns (After 5 Reflections)
- Same category 3+ times → create prevention rule
- Same mistake twice → escalate to pattern
- Improvement trend → document what worked
5. Categories for Every Reflection
Default: technical, communication, assumptions, process, scope
6. Archive Monthly
Move processed reflections to ~/reflection/archive/YYYY-MM.md. Keep reflections.md lean.
7. Track Streaks
Days since repeated mistake. Resets on pattern recurrence. Celebrate milestones.
Pattern Lifecycle
┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐
│ EMERGING │ ──▶ │ ACTIVE │ ──▶ │ MONITORING │ ──▶ │ RESOLVED │
│ 2 similar │ │ 3+ times │ │ Prevention │ │ 30 days │
│ reflections │ │ → create │ │ in place │ │ clean │
└──────────────┘ │ rule │ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘
└──────────────┘
Patterns in ~/reflection/patterns.md:
## [Pattern Name]
category: technical
frequency: 4 occurrences
status: active | monitoring | resolved
**Pattern:** What keeps happening
**Root:** Why this pattern exists
**Prevention:** Rule to break it
**Last seen:** YYYY-MM-DD
**Streak:** X days without recurrence
The "Inject Next Time" Superpower
The skill's real value: surfacing lessons BEFORE you repeat mistakes.
How it works:
- Before starting work, identify task domain
- Check
~/reflection/patterns.mdfor active patterns - If relevant pattern exists → mention it naturally
Example:
"Before we build this API — I have a lesson about timeout handling from a previous project. Let me make sure to include proper error timeouts this time."
Setup
On first use, read setup.md for integration guidelines. Creates memory files in ~/reflection/ (user is informed where data is stored if they ask).
Common Traps
| Trap | Consequence |
|---|---|
| Reflecting without logging | Lesson lost with session |
| Vague root causes | "Made mistake" doesn't prevent recurrence |
| No prevention rule | Same mistake WILL happen again |
| Ignoring patterns | Individual mistakes are noise; patterns are signal |
| Over-reflecting | 30 seconds pre-delivery, not 5 minutes |
Related Skills
Install with clawhub install <slug> if user confirms:
memory— persistent memory patternsdecide— decision-making autonomylearning— adaptive learning system
Feedback
- If useful:
clawhub star reflection - Stay updated:
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