Next

name: next description: | Get next task from active implementation plan - shows task details, progress, and dependencies. TRIGGER when: user wants next task ("what's next", "next task", "what should I work on", "get next"). version: "2.1.0" DO NOT TRIGGER when: user wants to create plans (use /plan), start issues (use /start-issue), or view all tasks (use task list).

Next - Task Navigator

Get the next actionable task from your current implementation plan with context and progress tracking.

Overview

This skill navigates active plans and provides the next task to work on:

What it does:

1. Locates active plan in .claude/plans/active/
2. Identifies next incomplete task
3. Displays task details with context
4. Shows progress and dependencies
5. Provides clear next steps

Why it's needed: During implementation, developers need to know "what's next" without manually reading plan files. This skill extracts the next task, explains dependencies, and tracks progress - keeping focus on the current work.

When to use:

• After completing a task (what's next?)
• Starting a work session (where did I leave off?)
• Checking progress (how much is left?)
• Understanding task dependencies

Workflow

This is a simple, fast operation (<10 seconds) that navigates your active plan:

1. Locate active plan in .claude/plans/active/
2. Parse tasks from plan markdown
3. Identify next incomplete task
4. Extract details and dependencies
5. Display task with context and progress

No todo creation needed - this skill executes all steps automatically.

Arguments

$ARGUMENTS = "" | "skip" | "status"

Options:

• (empty) - Show next incomplete task
• skip - Skip current task, show next
• status - Show overall plan progress

Core Functionality

1. Locate Active Plan

Search for plan files in .claude/plans/active/:

ls .claude/plans/active/*.md

Plan detection:

• Look for files matching issue-{number}-plan.md or {feature}-plan.md
• If multiple plans, use most recently modified
• If no plans, inform user and suggest creating one

2. Parse Plan for Tasks

Extract tasks from plan markdown:

Task patterns:

- [ ] Task description
- [x] Completed task

Section detection:

• Look for ## Tasks or ## Implementation Phases
• Parse checklist items
• Track completion state

3. Identify Next Task

Find first incomplete task:

For each task in plan:
  if task is unchecked (- [ ]):
    return as next task
  else:
    mark as completed and continue

Special cases:

• All tasks complete: Congratulate and suggest next steps
• No tasks found: Guide user to add tasks to plan
• Argument skip: Skip first incomplete, return second

4. Extract Task Details

Parse task metadata:

Standard format:

### Phase 1: Authentication Setup
- [ ] Install passport and jsonwebtoken packages
- [ ] Create database migration for users table
- [x] Set up OAuth providers

Metadata extraction:

• Task number (sequential position)
• Phase/section name
• Task description
• Dependencies (tasks that must complete first)
• Success criteria (if specified)

5. Display Task

Show comprehensive task information:

# Next Task

**Plan**: [Plan Name]
**Progress**: X/Y tasks complete (Z%)

## Task #N: [Task Description]

### What to Do
[Clear actionable steps]

### Success Criteria
- Criterion 1
- Criterion 2

### Dependencies
✅ Task #X - DONE
✅ Task #Y - DONE

### Related Tasks
→ Task #N+1: [Next task preview]

### Context
[Why this task matters, how it fits in plan]

### Estimated Effort
[If available from plan]

6. Show Progress

Track completion:

**Progress Summary:**
- Completed: X tasks
- Current: Task #Y
- Remaining: Z tasks
- Overall: X/Y tasks (Z%)

**Recent completions:**
- ✅ Task #1: OAuth setup
- ✅ Task #2: Database schema
- ✅ Task #3: OAuth callback

Output Examples

Example 1: Next Task

User: "what's next?"

Output:

# Next Task

**Plan**: User Authentication Feature
**Progress**: 3/8 tasks complete (37%)

## Task #4: Implement JWT Token Generation

### What to Do
1. Create `src/auth/jwt.service.ts`
2. Add JWT_SECRET to `.env`
3. Implement `generateToken(user)` method
4. Add token expiration (1 hour)
5. Write 3 unit tests

### Success Criteria
- ✅ Tokens generate on login
- ✅ Tokens decode correctly
- ✅ Expiration works
- ✅ Tests passing

### Dependencies
✅ Task #1: OAuth setup - DONE
✅ Task #2: Database schema - DONE
✅ Task #3: OAuth callback - DONE

### Related Tasks
→ Task #5: Token refresh rotation

### Estimated Effort
2-3 hours

Example 2: Skip Current Task

User: "/next skip"

Output:

# Next Task (Skipped #4)

**Plan**: User Authentication Feature
**Progress**: 3/8 tasks complete (37%)

⏭️ Skipped: Task #4 - Implement JWT Token Generation

## Task #5: Token Refresh Rotation

### What to Do
[Details for task #5...]

**Note:** Task #4 is still incomplete. Remember to complete it later.

Example 3: Show Status

User: "/next status"

Output:

# Plan Progress: User Authentication Feature

**Overall:** 3/8 tasks complete (37%)

## Completed Tasks ✅
- ✅ Task #1: Install dependencies
- ✅ Task #2: Create database schema
- ✅ Task #3: Implement OAuth callbacks

## Current Task 🔄
- 🔄 Task #4: Implement JWT token generation

## Remaining Tasks 📋
- ⬜ Task #5: Token refresh rotation
- ⬜ Task #6: Protected routes middleware
- ⬜ Task #7: Write integration tests
- ⬜ Task #8: Documentation

## Next Steps
Continue with Task #4, then proceed to Task #5.

Example 4: No Active Plan

User: "what's next?"

Output:

# No Active Plan Found

No implementation plan found in `.claude/plans/active/`.

## Options

1. **Start an issue** (recommended):

/start-issue #23

Auto-creates plan from GitHub issue.

2. **Create a plan manually**:

/plan "implement user authentication"

Generates detailed implementation plan.

3. **Check archived plans**:
Plans might be in `.claude/plans/archive/` if work is complete.

Example 5: All Tasks Complete

User: "what's next?"

Output:

# All Tasks Complete! 🎉

**Plan**: User Authentication Feature
**Progress**: 8/8 tasks complete (100%)

## Completed Work ✅
- ✅ Task #1: Install dependencies
- ✅ Task #2: Create database schema
- ✅ Task #3: Implement OAuth callbacks
- ✅ Task #4: Implement JWT token generation
- ✅ Task #5: Token refresh rotation
- ✅ Task #6: Protected routes middleware
- ✅ Task #7: Write integration tests
- ✅ Task #8: Documentation

## Next Steps

1. **Review your work**:

/review

2. **Finish the issue** (if working from GitHub issue):

/finish-issue #23

3. **Start next feature**:
Check your backlog for next priority.

Great work! This plan is complete.

Integration

With /start-issue:

/start-issue #23     # Creates plan from issue
/next                # Get first task from generated plan

With /plan:

/plan "new feature"  # Create manual plan
/next                # Get first task

With /finish-issue:

/next                # Work through tasks
# ... complete all tasks ...
/next                # Shows "All complete"
/finish-issue #23    # Finish and close issue

Performance

• Execution time: <10 seconds
• Operations: File read + parse + format
• No external dependencies: Pure file system operation

Fast because it's a straightforward file read and parse operation with no complex processing or external API calls.

Best Practices

1. Check progress regularly - /next status shows overview
2. Skip strategically - Use /next skip for blocking tasks
3. Update plan - Mark tasks complete as you finish them
4. Stay focused - One task at a time
5. Context matters - Read dependencies before starting

Worktree Support

If the issue was started with /start-issue and a worktree was created, the plan file is located in the worktree directory.

Auto-Detection

Read plan from worktree if path is recorded:

# Check if plan has worktree metadata
PLAN_FILE=".claude/plans/active/issue-${ISSUE_NUM}-plan.md"
WORKTREE_PATH=$(grep "^**Worktree**:" "$PLAN_FILE" | cut -d' ' -f2)

if [[ -n "$WORKTREE_PATH" ]]; then
  # Use worktree plan path
  PLAN_FILE="${WORKTREE_PATH}/.claude/plans/active/issue-${ISSUE_NUM}-plan.md"
fi

Reading Plan with Worktree

Always use absolute path when worktree is detected:

# ✅ CORRECT - Absolute worktree path
Read /Users/woo/dev/ai-dev-117-auto-detect-worktree/.claude/plans/active/issue-117-plan.md

# ❌ WRONG - Relative path or main repo
Read .claude/plans/active/issue-117-plan.md
Read /Users/woo/dev/ai-dev/.claude/plans/active/issue-117-plan.md

Fallback Behavior

If no worktree path found:

• ✅ Use current working directory
• ✅ Read from .claude/plans/active/issue-{N}-plan.md
• ✅ Backward compatible

Related Skills

• /start-issue - Creates plan from GitHub issue
• /plan - Manual plan creation
• /finish-issue - Completes issue workflow

Version: 2.1.0 Last Updated: 2026-03-10 Changelog:

• v2.1.0 (2026-03-10): Get next task from implementation plan Pattern: Tool-Reference (guides task navigation) Compliance: ADR-001 Section 4 ✅