Custom Skill Example: Project Helper

This directory contains a complete example of a custom skill for Chief of Staff.

Overview

The Project Helper skill demonstrates how to create a comprehensive custom skill that:

• Enforces project-specific coding standards
• Generates components following team conventions
• Creates tests using the project's testing framework
• Provides project-specific guidance

Files

File	Purpose
manifest.json	Skill metadata, triggers, and configuration options
skill.md	Skill instructions and behavior
README.md	This documentation file

Installation

Install Locally

# From this directory
chief skill install --local .

# Or specify the path
chief skill install --local /path/to/custom-skill

Install to Workspace

For project-specific installation:

chief skill install --local . --workspace

This installs to ./.chief-of-staff/skills/ in your project.

Configuration

After installation, configure the skill by creating .chief-of-staff/skills/example-org__project-helper/config.json:

{
  "projectName": "My Awesome Project",
  "codeStyle": "airbnb",
  "testFramework": "vitest",
  "componentPath": "src/components",
  "enableAutoFix": true
}

Usage

Trigger Phrases

The skill activates on these phrases:

• "help with project"
• "project standards"
• "create component"
• "generate test"
• "check code style"

Examples

Create a UserProfile component that displays user information

Generate tests for the formatDate utility function

Check this code for style issues:
[paste code]

What are our project standards for error handling?

Customizing This Skill

Modify for Your Project

1. Update manifest.json:

   • Change id to your organization/skill-name
   • Update author information
   • Adjust triggers for your workflow
   • Add relevant configOptions

2. Update skill.md:

   • Replace code standards with your own
   • Update templates to match your patterns
   • Add project-specific guidance

Add New Features

1. Add new trigger phrases to manifest.json
2. Add corresponding sections to skill.md
3. Test the skill locally before sharing

Best Practices

Skill Content

1. Be specific: Include concrete examples and templates
2. Be consistent: Follow the same format throughout
3. Be comprehensive: Cover edge cases and alternatives
4. Be practical: Focus on real-world usage

Configuration

1. Provide defaults: Every option should have a sensible default
2. Document options: Explain what each option does
3. Validate input: Define allowed values with enum where appropriate

Triggers

1. Be unique: Avoid triggers that conflict with other skills
2. Be natural: Use phrases users would actually say
3. Be comprehensive: Include variations of the same request

Sharing Your Skill

With Team

Share the skill directory and have team members install locally:

# Team member runs:
chief skill install --local /shared/path/to/skill

Via Git

Publish to a Git repository:

# Others install with:
chief skill install --git https://github.com/org/skill-repo.git

Via Registry

When a public registry is available:

chief skill publish ./custom-skill