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Bruno Ashford @brunoashfordSubscribeModule 5 · Lesson 5.3 · 12 min
Multi-File Skills
Attach templates, examples and checklists to a skill so its output matches your standard, not a generic one.
Use ← → to move. The marker highlights text and the pencil draws on the slide; navigation locks while you annotate. Undo removes the last mark, Esc exits.
1Plan the folder
Keep SKILL.md as the short set of instructions and put the supporting material next to it. A typical business skill has a template, one to three examples and a checklist. For example: SKILL.md, template.md, an examples folder with two real proposals, and checklist.md.
mkdir -p .claude/skills/sales-proposal/examples2Point to the files from SKILL.md
Tell Claude when to read each file. For example: use template.md for structure, read the examples to match tone and length, run checklist.md before handing over. Clear pointers mean Claude loads only what the step needs.
Update .claude/skills/sales-proposal/SKILL.md so that it: uses template.md for structure, reads the files in examples/ to match tone and length, and runs through checklist.md before presenting the proposal. Explain in one line inside SKILL.md when each file is used.3Use real, anonymised examples
Take your two best real documents, remove client names and private details, and save them as examples. Label what made them good in a short note at the top. Real examples beat invented ones every time.
4Keep SKILL.md lean
Anthropic suggests keeping SKILL.md under about 500 lines and moving detailed reference material into separate files. For business skills, 30 to 120 lines of instructions is usually right.
5Pass details when you call it
When you call a skill directly, anything you type after the name is passed to it. Use this for the client name, the file or the month, so the same skill serves every case.
/sales-proposal Client: Oakwood household, full roof replacement, 3-bed semi, survey notes in clients/client-017/survey.mdThe fastest way to get output in your standard is not a longer instruction. It is an example. Show Claude your best proposal, your best complaint reply, your best report, and it will match them far better than any description of them.
A skill is a folder, so it can hold more than one file: a template to fill, two or three real examples, a checklist to run before handing over. SKILL.md points to them, and Claude reads them only when it needs them.
Key points
- Examples beat instructions for matching your standard.
- A skill folder can hold templates, examples and checklists.
- SKILL.md should say when to read each file.
- Keep SKILL.md lean and move detail into supporting files.
- Pass client, file or month after the skill name.
Avoid
- Using real client data in examples without anonymising it.
- Adding supporting files that SKILL.md never mentions.
- Using invented, perfect examples instead of real ones.
- Stuffing every edge case into SKILL.md until it is unreadable.
Dave's proposal skill has a template with his six fixed sections, two anonymised examples of proposals that won jobs, and a checklist: price inside the range, guarantee mentioned, no start date promised, survey photos referenced. Before the examples were added, proposals were accurate but read like a brochure. After, they sounded like Dave. His estimator now produces a proposal in 10 minutes instead of an hour.