# Workflows

Neo is most useful when you treat substantial work as a small workflow rather than a single prompt. A workflow creates checkpoints for alignment, execution, and verification.

## A reliable pattern

1. **Define the outcome.** Describe what should exist or be true at the end.
2. **Provide context and inputs.** Identify the audience, source of truth, and current state.
3. **Set scope and constraints.** State what is included, excluded, and approval-gated.
4. **Ask Neo to plan.** Review the approach before expensive or irreversible work.
5. **Execute or draft.** Work through clear milestones.
6. **Review evidence and assumptions.** Correct issues while they are still contained.
7. **Revise.** Give targeted feedback tied to the acceptance criteria.
8. **Validate and deliver.** Check the final artifact and record open questions.

## Choose checkpoints by risk

A short, reversible task may not need a formal plan. Add checkpoints when work is long, ambiguous, expensive, external, destructive, or difficult to reverse.

> Inspect the existing materials and propose an outline first. After I approve it, draft the guide. Do not publish anything. Finish with a link check and a list of claims that need owner review.

## Keep a source of truth

Long workflows drift when new instructions conflict with older ones. Name the authoritative file, brief, or decision log. Ask Neo to summarize confirmed decisions before continuing after a major change.

## Workflow families

- [Learning and tutoring](/docs/workflows/use-cases#learning)
- [Research and decision support](/docs/workflows/use-cases#research-and-decisions)
- [Writing and communication](/docs/workflows/use-cases#writing-and-communication)
- [Software and technical work](/docs/workflows/use-cases#software-and-technical-work)
- [Personal organization](/docs/workflows/use-cases#personal-organization)
- [Long-running work](/docs/workflows/long-running-work)

## Finish clearly

A useful completion summary states what was done, where outputs are located, what checks ran, what failed or remained unavailable, and which decisions still require you.