Workflow Lock

Workflow Lock

The user just did something that worked well and wants to do it again consistently. Capture the successful pattern and convert it into a reusable template with variables, trigger conditions, and quality checks.

When to Activate

Manual triggers:

• "Lock this workflow"
• "Save this as a template"
• "I want to reuse this"
• "Turn this into a repeatable process"
• "Template this"

Auto-detect triggers:

• User says "I'll need to do this again next week/month/quarter"
• User asks Claude to do the same task with different inputs
• User says "can we do exactly this but for [different thing]?"
• User expresses satisfaction with a result and hints at reuse

Phase 1: Identify What Worked

Review the successful interaction and extract:

1. The trigger: What initiated the task? (A question, a data input, a recurring event)
2. The inputs: What information did the user provide? What changes each time?
3. The process: What steps did Claude follow to produce the output?
4. The output: What was the format, structure, length, and quality of the result?
5. The implicit rules: What constraints or preferences were applied that the user didn't explicitly state but that shaped the good result?

Ask the user one question at a time to confirm each:

"I want to capture this so you can reuse it. Let me make sure I've got the pattern right. The trigger for this task is [X] — is that right?"

Phase 2: Templatize

Convert the successful interaction into a reusable template with:

Variables

Replace every instance-specific detail with a named variable in {brackets}.

Example:

• Original: "Write a blog post about React performance optimization"
• Template: "Write a blog post about {topic}"

Identify ALL variables — common ones include:

• {topic}, {audience}, {company_name}, {date_range}, {data_source}
• {tone}, {length}, {format}, {recipient}

Trigger Condition

Define when this workflow should be used:

• Time-based: "Every Monday morning" or "End of each quarter"
• Event-based: "When a new client signs up" or "After each sprint"
• Request-based: "When someone asks for X"

Quality Gate

Define what makes the output acceptable:

• Minimum requirements the output must meet
• Common failure modes to check for
• A quick self-check Claude should run before delivering

Phase 3: Output the Locked Workflow

Present the locked workflow in this format:

# Workflow: [Name]

## When to Use
[Trigger condition — when should this workflow run?]

## Variables
Fill these in before running:
- {variable_1}: [Description of what goes here]
- {variable_2}: [Description of what goes here]

## Prompt Template
[The complete, copy-pasteable prompt with {variables} in place]

## Expected Output
[Description of what the output should look like, including format,
length, sections, and tone]

## Quality Checklist
Before accepting the output, verify:
- [ ] [Check 1]
- [ ] [Check 2]
- [ ] [Check 3]

## Example
**Variables filled:** {variable_1} = "X", {variable_2} = "Y"
**Result:** [Brief description or excerpt of what this produces]

Phase 4: Offer Next Steps

After presenting the locked workflow, ask:

1. "Want me to run this right now with different inputs to test it?"
2. "Should I turn this into a SKILL.md you can install permanently?"
3. "Want me to build a version that works with a spreadsheet of inputs for batch processing?"

Rules

1. Capture implicit preferences, not just explicit instructions. If the user liked a casual tone but never asked for it, include "Use a conversational, casual tone" in the template.

2. Every variable must have a description. "{data}" is useless. "{data: the raw CSV export from Salesforce containing Q3 pipeline metrics}" is useful.

3. Include at least one example of the template filled in. People understand templates better when they see a concrete instance.

4. The locked workflow should be usable by someone other than the original user. Write it as if you're handing it to a colleague who wasn't in the original conversation.

5. Don't over-templatize. If something is always the same (e.g., the output format), hardcode it. Only variablize what actually changes.

Chaining

• prompt-architect → workflow-lock: Build the prompt, then lock it into a repeatable workflow
• automate-audit → workflow-lock: For recurring tasks identified in the audit, lock workflows for each one
• Any successful interaction → workflow-lock: This skill can be chained after ANY task that the user wants to repeat