# Custom skills

Canonical URL: https://docs.perisclaw.com/custom-skills

There is a difference between telling your assistant what you want and teaching
it how you work. The first you do every time; the second you do once.

A **skill** is a procedure Perisclaw follows whenever the situation calls for
it. The easiest way to create one is to say so in the middle of doing the
thing:

> **Teach it mid-task:** From now on, when I say 'do the standup post', pull yesterday's updates from the team group and format them as: name, done, next, blockers.

Perisclaw writes the skill, tells you what it saved, and uses it from then on.
If you correct it later (*“actually put blockers first”*), the skill gets
updated, not just that one reply.

You can also write one yourself. Open **Skills** in your dashboard, choose
**New skill**, and describe when it should be used and what to do.

## Your skills library

The **Skills** page is a searchable list split into **Your skills** and
**Built-in** skills. Switch a skill on or off directly in the list, or open its
page to edit the source instructions. A disabled skill stays in your library,
but Perisclaw will not load it while working.

Perisclaw’s built-in skills appear in the same list and are editable too. If an
edit does not work out, open that skill and choose **Restore to default** to
bring back the version shipped by Perisclaw. Custom skills can be deleted;
built-in skills cannot.

## Edit with help

The menu beside **Save** holds the secondary actions:

* **Improve with AI:** a general cleanup that tightens what you wrote without
  changing what you meant.
* **Describe changes:** type or dictate a specific request. Perisclaw prepares
  a draft in the editor first; review it and choose **Save** before it becomes
  the active skill.
* **View change history:** a separate page with every saved revision and its
  exact diff.

**Info: Your edits are never silently overwritten**

  Your assistant cannot replace a skill while you are editing it. If the
  skill changes after you open it, reload the latest version before saving.

## Skills worth writing

* *“When I say ‘do the standup post’, pull yesterday’s updates from the team
  group and format them as: name, done, next, blockers.”*
* *“For any invoice that comes in, file it to Drive as YYYY-MM-Vendor, log the
  amount to the expenses sheet, and tell me the running total.”*
* *“When someone asks about pricing, never quote a number. Say I’ll follow up
  and make me a task.”*
* *“New client onboarding: create the group, add them, send the welcome
  message, book the kickoff, and put a reminder on my calendar for day 7.”*

Skills are about **how you work**. For what Perisclaw remembers about you
personally, see [Personal memory](/personal-memory); for what it remembers
about other people, see [Relationship memory](/relationship-memory).

### [Run a skill on a schedule](/automations)

Combine a skill with an automation for recurring, formatted work.

### [Preferences vs procedures](/personal-memory)

Small preferences live in personal memory; repeatable procedures live in skills.