# Coach

> Use when Claude makes repeated mistakes, users correct behavior, tool failures indicate missing knowledge, or managing learning via /coach commands.

- Skill: `netresearch/coach` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 17 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add netresearch/coach`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/netresearch/coach/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- License: (MIT AND CC-BY-SA-4.0). See LICENSE-MIT and LICENSE-CC-BY-SA-4.0
- Author: netresearch (https://skillmd.com/u/netresearch)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/netresearch/coach

---


# Coach - Self-Improving Learning System

Coach enables Claude to learn from friction and improve over time. It detects learning opportunities (user corrections, repeated instructions, tool failures, tone escalation), extracts actionable improvement candidates, and proposes changes requiring explicit user approval.

**Core Principle**: No silent writes. All improvements require user approval via `/coach approve`.

## Activation Triggers

Activate when: user corrections ("no", "stop", "don't"), repeated instructions, tool/command failures, tone escalation (ALL CAPS, "!!!"), skill supplements ("also remember..."), deprecated-tool warnings, explicit `/coach` commands, or session end.

## Signal Categories (Priority Order)

1. **COMMAND_FAILURE** (Highest) - Non-zero exit, stderr patterns
2. **USER_CORRECTION** (High) - Explicit correction language
3. **SKILL_SUPPLEMENT** (High) - Additional guidance for a skill
4. **VERSION_ISSUE** (Medium-High) - Deprecated/outdated warnings
5. **REPETITION** (Medium) - Semantically similar instruction repeated
6. **TONE_ESCALATION** (Low) - Frustration indicators

## Candidate Types

| Type | Description | Example |
|------|-------------|---------|
| `rule` | Stable constraint | "Never edit generated files" |
| `checklist` | Workflow step | "Run tests after code change" |
| `snippet` | Repeatable command | "Preflight check script" |
| `skill` | Skill update suggestion | "Add X guidance to Y skill" |
| `antipattern` | Things to never do | "Never assume tool exists" |

## Workflow Summary

1. **Detection** — hooks capture events → `~/.claude-coach/events.sqlite`
2. **Generation** — aggregate signals into proposals (fingerprints dedupe)
3. **Scope** — project vs global per path/language
4. **Review** — `/coach review` approves/rejects/edits
5. **Apply** — approved rules → `~/.claude/CLAUDE.md` (global) or repo `AGENTS.md` (project)
6. **Retro** — `/coach retro` maps manual work to skill gaps, opens PRs at source repos

## File Locations

```
~/.claude-coach/
├── events.sqlite      # Raw friction events
├── candidates.json    # Pending proposals
└── ledger.sqlite      # Cross-repo fingerprints

~/.claude/CLAUDE.md     # Global rules destination
<repo>/AGENTS.md        # Project rules destination

~/.claude/ or <repo>/.claude/
├── checklists/        # Workflow checklists
└── snippets/          # Reusable commands
```

## Scope

Coach: live in-session signal — `events.sqlite` capture, `/coach` commands.
`retro`: session-end / cross-session analysis, skill-PR routing. `/coach
retro` overlaps `retro`'s job; merging them is an open decision.

## Scripts

`scripts/` (this dir) — self-contained for skill-dir installs. Plugin path:
`${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/coach/scripts/`:

| Script | Purpose |
|--------|---------|
| `init_coach.py` | Initialize coach system |
| `detect_signals.py` | Pattern detection for friction |
| `aggregate.py` | Turn signals into candidates |
| `skill_analyzer.py` | Analyze skills and scan for outdated tools |
| `apply.py` | Apply approved proposals |

## Proactive Commands

- `/coach scan` — Check for outdated CLI tools and dependencies
- `/coach retro` — Session retrospective: analyze manual work, create PRs to improve skills at source

For detailed architecture, schemas, and patterns, see `references/` directory.