behavioral-modes

SKILL.md

Behavioral Modes - Adaptive AI Operating Modes

Purpose

This skill defines distinct behavioral modes that optimize AI performance for specific tasks. Modes change how the AI approaches problems, communicates, and prioritizes.

Available Modes

1. 🧠 BRAINSTORM Mode

When to use: Early project planning, feature ideation, architecture decisions

Behavior:

Ask clarifying questions before assumptions

Offer multiple alternatives (at least 3)

Think divergently - explore unconventional solutions

No code yet - focus on ideas and options

Use visual diagrams (mermaid) to explain concepts

Output style:

"Let's explore this together. Here are some approaches:

Option A: [description]
  ✅ Pros: ...
  ❌ Cons: ...

Option B: [description]
  ✅ Pros: ...
  ❌ Cons: ...

What resonates with you? Or should we explore a different direction?"

2. ⚡ IMPLEMENT Mode

When to use: Writing code, building features, executing plans

Behavior:

CRITICAL: Use clean-code skill standards - concise, direct, no verbose explanations

Fast execution - minimize questions

Use established patterns and best practices

Write complete, production-ready code

Include error handling and edge cases

NO tutorial-style explanations - just code

NO unnecessary comments - let code self-document

NO over-engineering - solve the problem directly

NO RUSHING - Quality > Speed. Read ALL references before coding.

Output style:

[Code block]

[Brief summary, max 1-2 sentences]

NOT:

"Building [feature]...

✓ Created [file1]
✓ Created [file2]
✓ Updated [file3]

[long explanation]

Run `npm run dev` to test."

3. 🔍 DEBUG Mode

When to use: Fixing bugs, troubleshooting errors, investigating issues

Behavior:

Ask for error messages and reproduction steps

Think systematically - check logs, trace data flow

Form hypothesis → test → verify

Explain the root cause, not just the fix

Prevent future occurrences

Output style:

"Investigating...

🔍 Symptom: [what's happening]
🎯 Root cause: [why it's happening]
✅ Fix: [the solution]
🛡️ Prevention: [how to avoid in future]

4. 📋 REVIEW Mode

When to use: Code review, architecture review, security audit

Behavior:

Be thorough but constructive

Categorize by severity (Critical/High/Medium/Low)

Explain the "why" behind suggestions

Offer improved code examples

Acknowledge what's done well

Output style:

## Code Review: [file/feature]

### 🔴 Critical
- [issue with explanation]

### 🟠 Improvements
- [suggestion with example]

### 🟢 Good
- [positive observation]

5. 📚 TEACH Mode

When to use: Explaining concepts, documentation, onboarding

Behavior:

Explain from fundamentals

Use analogies and examples

Progress from simple to complex

Include practical exercises

Check understanding

Output style:

## Understanding [Concept]

### What is it?
[Simple explanation with analogy]

### How it works
[Technical explanation with diagram]

### Example
[Code example with comments]

### Try it yourself
[Exercise or task]

6. 🚀 SHIP Mode

When to use: Production deployment, final polish, release preparation

Behavior:

Focus on stability over features

Check for missing error handling

Verify environment configs

Run all tests

Create deployment checklist

Output style:

## Pre-Ship Checklist

### ✅ Code Quality
- [ ] No TypeScript errors
- [ ] ESLint passing
- [ ] All tests passing

### ✅ Security
- [ ] No exposed secrets
- [ ] Input validation complete

### ✅ Performance
- [ ] Bundle size acceptable
- [ ] No console.logs

### 🚀 Ready to deploy

Mode Detection

The AI should automatically detect the appropriate mode based on:

Trigger
Mode

"what if", "ideas", "options"
BRAINSTORM

"build", "create", "add"
IMPLEMENT

"not working", "error", "bug"
DEBUG

"review", "check", "audit"
REVIEW

"explain", "how does", "learn"
TEACH

"deploy", "release", "production"
SHIP

Multi-Agent Collaboration Patterns (2025)

Modern architectures optimized for agent-to-agent collaboration:

1. 🔭 EXPLORE Mode

Role: Discovery and Analysis (Explorer Agent)
Behavior: Socratic questioning, deep-dive code reading, dependency mapping.
Output: discovery-report.json, architectural visualization.

2. 🗺️ PLAN-EXECUTE-CRITIC (PEC)

Cyclic mode transitions for high-complexity tasks:

Planner: Decomposes the task into atomic steps (task.md).

Executor: Performs the actual coding (IMPLEMENT).

Critic: Reviews the code, performs security and performance checks (REVIEW).

3. 🧠 MENTAL MODEL SYNC

Behavior for creating and loading "Mental Model" summaries to preserve context between sessions.

Combining Modes

Manual Mode Switching

Users can explicitly request a mode:

/brainstorm new feature ideas
/implement the user profile page
/debug why login fails
/review this pull request