Reflect Skill

Critical learning capture system for Squad. Prevents repeating mistakes and preserves successful patterns across sessions.

Analyze conversations and propose improvements to squad knowledge based on what worked, what didn't, and edge cases discovered. Every correction is a learning opportunity.

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Integration with Squad Architecture

Reflect complements existing Squad knowledge systems:

1. .squad/agents/{agent}/history.md — Permanent learnings from completed work (append-only; each agent updates their own file; Scribe propagates cross-agent updates)
2. .squad/decisions.md — Team-wide decisions that all agents respect
3. reflect skill — Captures in-flight learnings from conversations that may graduate to history.md or decisions.md

Workflow:

• Use reflect during work to capture learnings
• At session end, review captured learnings
• Promote HIGH confidence patterns → lead agent for decision.md review
• Promote agent-specific patterns → {agent}/history.md updates

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Triggers

🔴 HIGH Priority (Invoke Immediately)

Trigger	Example	Why Critical
User correction	"no", "wrong", "not like that", "never do"	Captures mistakes to prevent repetition
Architectural insight	"you removed that without understanding why"	Documents design decisions (Chesterton's Fence)
Immediate fixes	"debug", "root cause", "fix all"	Learns from errors in real-time

🟡 MEDIUM Priority (Invoke After Multiple)

Trigger	Example	Why Important
User praise	"perfect", "exactly", "great"	Reinforces successful patterns
Tool preferences	"use X instead of Y", "prefer"	Builds workflow preferences
Edge cases	"what if X happens?", "don't forget", "ensure"	Captures scenarios to handle

🟢 LOW Priority (Invoke at Session End)

Trigger	Example	Why Useful
Repeated patterns	Frequent use of specific commands/tools	Identifies workflow preferences
Session end	After complex work	Consolidates all session learnings

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Process

Phase 1: Identify Learning Target

Determine what knowledge system should be updated:

1. Agent-specific learning → .squad/agents/{agent}/history.md
2. Team-wide decision → .squad/decisions/inbox/{agent}-{topic}.md
3. Skill-specific improvement → Document in session, recommend to skill owner

Phase 2: Analyze Conversation

Scan for learning signals with confidence levels:

HIGH Confidence: Corrections

User actively steered or corrected output.

Detection patterns:

• Explicit rejection: "no", "not like that", "that's wrong"
• Strong directives: "never do", "always do", "don't ever"
• User provided alternative implementation

Example:

User: "No, use the azure-devops MCP tool instead of raw API calls"
→ [HIGH] + Add constraint: "Prefer azure-devops MCP tools over REST API"

MEDIUM Confidence: Success Patterns

Output was accepted or praised.

Detection patterns:

• Explicit praise: "perfect", "great", "yes", "exactly"
• User built on output without modification
• Output was committed without changes

Example:

User: "Perfect, that's exactly what I needed"
→ [MED] + Add preference: "Include usage examples in documentation"

MEDIUM Confidence: Edge Cases

Scenarios not anticipated.

Detection patterns:

• Questions not answered
• Workarounds user had to apply
• Error handling gaps discovered

LOW Confidence: Preferences

Accumulated patterns over time.

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Phase 3: Propose Learnings

Present findings:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ REFLECTION: {target (agent/decision/skill)}                  │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                             │
│ [HIGH] + Add constraint: "{specific constraint}"            │
│   Source: "{quoted user correction}"                        │
│   Target: .squad/decisions/inbox/{agent}-{topic}.md         │
│                                                             │
│ [MED]  + Add preference: "{specific preference}"            │
│   Source: "{evidence from conversation}"                    │
│   Target: .squad/agents/{agent}/history.md                  │
│                                                             │
│ [LOW]  ~ Note for review: "{observation}"                   │
│   Source: "{pattern observed}"                              │
│   Target: Session notes only                                │
│                                                             │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Apply changes? [Y/n/edit]                                   │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Confidence Threshold:

Threshold	Action
≥1 HIGH signal	Always propose (user explicitly corrected)
≥2 MED signals	Propose (sufficient pattern)
≥3 LOW signals	Propose (accumulated evidence)
1-2 LOW only	Skip (insufficient evidence)

Phase 4: Persist Learnings

ALWAYS show changes before applying.

After user approval:

1. For Agent History:

   • Append to .squad/agents/{agent}/history.md under ## Learnings section
   • Format: Date, assignment context, key learning

2. For Team Decisions:

   • Create .squad/decisions/inbox/{agent}-{topic}.md
   • Lead agent reviews and merges to decisions.md if appropriate

3. For Skills:

   • Document recommendation in session notes
   • Squad lead reviews and routes to skill owner

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Usage Examples

Example 1: User Correction

Conversation:

Agent: "I'll use grep to search the repository"
User: "No, use the code search tools first, grep is too slow"

Reflection Output:

[HIGH] + Add constraint: "Use code intelligence tools before grep"
  Source: "No, use the code search tools first, grep is too slow"
  Target: .squad/agents/{agent}/history.md

Example 2: Success Pattern

Conversation:

Agent: [Creates PR with detailed description and test plan]
User: "Perfect! This is exactly the format I want for all PRs"

Reflection Output:

[MED] + Add preference: "Include test plan in PR descriptions"
  Source: User praised detailed PR format
  Target: .squad/decisions/inbox/pr-format.md (for team adoption)

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When to Use

✅ Use reflect when:

• User says "no", "wrong", "not like that" (HIGH priority)
• User says "perfect", "exactly", "great" (MED priority)
• You discover edge cases or gaps
• Complex work session with multiple learnings
• At end of sprint/milestone to consolidate patterns

❌ Don't use reflect when:

• Simple one-off questions with no pattern
• User is just exploring ideas (no concrete decisions)
• Learning is already captured in history.md/decisions.md

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See Also

• .squad/decisions.md — Team-wide decisions
• .squad/agents/*/history.md — Agent-specific learnings
• .squad/routing.md — Work assignment patterns