Best Practices

Common Best Practices (ranked by community frequency)

• CLAUDE.md and memory: Maintain concise CLAUDE.md at repo root (and subfolders/home). Use # to capture commands, patterns, and rules the model should follow.
• Plan before coding: Ask Claude to research and propose a plan (Explore → Plan → Code → Commit). Use extended thinking ("think hard/ultrathink") and avoid one-shot mega prompts.
• Keep context focused: Use /clear between tasks, start fresh sessions per task, and /compact at natural breakpoints.
• Tests first, human-written: Prefer TDD. Run tests/typecheck/lint after small edits. Do not let AI write or modify test expectations for critical areas.
• Safety and permissions: Configure allowlists; use auto-accept sparingly. YOLO (--dangerously-skip-permissions) only in constrained environments with backups.
• Be specific and reference context: State exact requirements, edge cases, and success criteria; reference files; attach images/URLs when relevant.
• Iterate in small steps: Stage early and often, interrupt to course-correct, undo when needed, and avoid large, hard-to-review diffs.
• Parallelize with subagents and worktrees: Use Task/subagents, multiple Claude instances, multiple checkouts or git worktrees for independent tasks.
• Customize your setup: Create custom slash commands and hooks; fine-tune .claude/settings.json; install gh CLI; enable IDE/terminal integrations.
• Use Claude for git/GitHub: Generate commits/PRs, fix failing builds, triage issues, and handle complex git flows via guided commands.
• Headless/CI automation: Use headless mode in scripts and CI to lint, triage, or run structured workflows.
• Respect "never-touch" zones: Keep migrations, API contracts, secrets, and security-critical code under human control with explicit boundaries.

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