tools-only Workflow Diagram
This diagram shows how the three files work together and how hooks interact with them.
Visual Workflow
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ TASK START │
│ User requests a complex task (>5 tool calls expected) │
└────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌───────────────────────────────┐
│ STEP 1: Create task_plan.md │
│ (NEVER skip this step!) │
└───────────────┬───────────────┘
│
▼
┌───────────────────────────────┐
│ STEP 2: Create findings.md │
│ STEP 3: Create progress.md │
└───────────────┬───────────────┘
│
▼
┌────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ WORK LOOP (Iterative) │
│ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ PreToolUse Hook (Automatic) │ │
│ │ → Reads task_plan.md before │ │
│ │ Write/Edit/Bash operations │ │
│ │ → Refreshes goals in attention │ │
│ └──────────────┬───────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Perform work (tool calls) │ │
│ │ - Research → Update findings.md │ │
│ │ - Implement → Update progress.md │ │
│ │ - Make decisions → Update both │ │
│ └──────────────┬───────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ PostToolUse Hook (Automatic) │ │
│ │ → Reminds to update task_plan.md │ │
│ │ if phase completed │ │
│ └──────────────┬───────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ After 2 view/browser operations: │ │
│ │ → MUST update findings.md │ │
│ │ (2-Action Rule) │ │
│ └──────────────┬───────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ After completing a phase: │ │
│ │ → Update task_plan.md status │ │
│ │ → Update progress.md with details │ │
│ └──────────────┬───────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ If error occurs: │ │
│ │ → Log in task_plan.md │ │
│ │ → Log in progress.md │ │
│ │ → Document resolution │ │
│ └──────────────┬───────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ └──────────┐ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────────────┐ │
│ │ More work to do? │ │
│ └──────┬───────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ YES ───┘ │
│ │ │
│ └──────────┐ │
│ │ │
└─────────────────────────┘ │
│
NO │
│ │
▼ │
┌──────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Stop Hook (Automatic) │
│ → Checks if all phases complete │
│ → Verifies task_plan.md status │
└──────────────┬───────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌──────────────────────────────────────┐
│ All phases complete? │
└──────────────┬───────────────────────┘
│
┌──────────┴──────────┐
│ │
YES NO
│ │
▼ ▼
┌─────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐
│ TASK COMPLETE │ │ Continue work │
│ Deliver files │ │ (back to loop) │
└─────────────────┘ └─────────────────┘
Key Interactions
Hooks
| Hook | When It Fires | What It Does |
|---|---|---|
| SessionStart | When Claude Code session begins | Notifies skill is ready |
| PreToolUse | Before Write/Edit/Bash operations | Reads task_plan.md to refresh goals |
| PostToolUse | After Write/Edit operations | Reminds to update phase status |
| Stop | When Claude tries to stop | Verifies all phases are complete |
The 2-Action Rule
After every 2 view/browser/search operations, you MUST update findings.md.
Operation 1: WebSearch → Note results
Operation 2: WebFetch → MUST UPDATE findings.md NOW
Operation 3: Read file → Note findings
Operation 4: Grep search → MUST UPDATE findings.md NOW
Phase Completion
When a phase is complete:
Update
task_plan.md:- Change status:
in_progress→complete - Mark checkboxes:
[ ]→[x]
- Change status:
Update
progress.md:- Log actions taken
- List files created/modified
- Note any issues encountered
Error Handling
When an error occurs:
- Log in
task_plan.md→ Errors Encountered table - Log in
progress.md→ Error Log with timestamp - Document the resolution
- Never repeat the same failed action
File Relationships
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ task_plan.md │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Goal: What you're trying to achieve │ │
│ │ Phases: 3-7 steps with status tracking │ │
│ │ Decisions: Major choices made │ │
│ │ Errors: Problems encountered │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ PreToolUse hook reads this │
│ before every Write/Edit/Bash │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
│
┌────────────────────┼────────────────────┐
│ │ │
▼ │ ▼
┌─────────────────┐ │ ┌─────────────────┐
│ findings.md │ │ │ progress.md │
│ │ │ │ │
│ Research │◄───────────┘ │ Session log │
│ Discoveries │ │ Actions taken │
│ Tech decisions │ │ Test results │
│ Resources │ │ Error log │
└─────────────────┘ └─────────────────┘
The 5-Question Reboot Test
If you can answer these questions, your context management is solid:
| Question | Answer Source |
|---|---|
| Where am I? | Current phase in task_plan.md |
| Where am I going? | Remaining phases in task_plan.md |
| What's the goal? | Goal statement in task_plan.md |
| What have I learned? | findings.md |
| What have I done? | progress.md |
Next Steps
- Quick Start Guide - Step-by-step tutorial
- Troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions