creating-skills

Structure your Claude Skill with frontmatter YAML (name and description), gerund-based naming, CSO-optimized keywords, and organized sections: Overview, When to Use, Quick Reference, Implementation, and Common Mistakes. This format ensures Claude can quickly scan and apply your documented patterns.

Optimize for CSO by front-loading task keywords, using clear action verbs, and including specific domain terms relevant to your use case. Write concise descriptions that help Claude match user queries to your Skill's core functionality without wasting tokens on unnecessary detail.

Create complete, runnable, self-contained code examples with clear comments explaining the pattern and best practices. Examples should demonstrate the exact workflow users will follow, making it easy for Claude to adapt the code to similar tasks without additional context.

Avoid vague descriptions, incomplete code examples, missing error handling, and overly long implementations that waste tokens. Skip unnecessary sections and ensure your Skill's name uses gerund form (e.g., 'creating-skills') so it's predictable and scannable for Claude's discovery.

Yes, this Skill applies to both designing new Skills and refining existing ones. Audit your current Skill against the structure requirements—frontmatter, naming, keyword coverage, and section organization—then update it to meet discoverability and actionability standards.

Design your workflow with clear sequential steps, explicit feedback loops between steps, and error handling for each stage. Structure the Implementation section to show how each step connects and what Claude should do if a step fails or produces unexpected output.