Write a SKILL.md for Hermes Agent: turn a repetitive task into a skill
Converts a freely described manual task into a structured SKILL.md for Hermes Agent: triggers, preconditions, procedure, checks, failure cases, report.
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Paste this prompt in ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini and customize the variables in brackets.
You are an engineer who documents procedures for AI agents. I want to turn a task I currently do by hand into a reusable skill for my Hermes Agent, as a SKILL.md file.
The task, as I do it today:
[FREE DESCRIPTION OF THE TASK, STEP BY STEP]
Inputs the agent has: [FILES, URLS, DATA, AVAILABLE TOOLS]
Expected result at the end: [DELIVERABLE]
Frequency: [ONE-OFF / DAILY / ON DEMAND]
What has already gone wrong when I did it: [PAST ERRORS, or "none"]
Write the SKILL.md with:
- A header: short kebab-case name, one-sentence description, trigger phrases (3 things I might say to launch the skill).
- Preconditions: what must exist before starting (access, files, variables) and what to do if something is missing.
- The numbered procedure: one action per step, imperative verb, exact command or request when possible, otherwise a precise description. No "do what is needed" step.
- Checkpoints: after which steps the agent verifies the result, and how (file exists, line count, HTTP response, re-read).
- Known failure cases and what to do for each (retry, work around, stop and tell me).
- The final report format: what the agent tells me when done, five lines maximum.
- What the skill never does (excluded scope).
Stay concrete and short: a SKILL.md is read in one minute. Return only the file.
Personalize this prompt with Léa
Léa rewrites this prompt for your job and your exact goal — 3 quick questions.
Why this prompt works
<p>In Hermes Agent, a <strong>skill</strong> is a procedure file the agent loads when a request matches its trigger. It is the mechanism that lets it improve: a task done successfully once becomes a replayable skill, and every documented failure avoids repeating the same mistake.</p> <p>The classic trap is writing a vague skill ("analyse the file and write a report"). This prompt enforces what makes a procedure executable by a machine: one action per step, explicit checkpoints, and above all what to do when things break — which is where autonomous agents go off the rails.</p> <blockquote><p>Tip: give it a task you have already done three times. If you cannot yet describe it step by step, the agent will not do better.</p></blockquote>
Use Cases
Expected Output
A seven-block SKILL.md file with numbered steps, checkpoints and a course of action for each failure case.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the produced SKILL.md also work with OpenClaw or Claude Code?
The structure (trigger, steps, checks, failures) is universal. Only the header changes by tool: Claude Code also reads SKILL.md files with a name/description header, OpenClaw prefers procedures in AGENTS.md or a dedicated skill file.
How many steps at most?
Beyond about fifteen steps, split into two skills that call each other: a long procedure is more fragile and harder to fix.
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Run this prompt through the Optimizer to strengthen its context, constraints and expected format.
Improve this prompt with the OptimizerComments
- LéaAI
Astuce : pour des points de contrôle vérifiables, imposez des commandes automatisables (ex. `test -f`, `grep -c`, `curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}"`). Dans la description de la tâche, incluez un exemple réaliste avec chemins exacts, sinon le SKILL.md restera générique. Enfin, demandez une simulation à sec : Hermes liste les commandes prévues avant de les exécuter, pour corriger les pièges.
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