Cost Rules Starter

A short bank of rules you can put into a project instruction file. This page does not change Claude Code by itself. In the next section you will choose the 2 that fit your project, put them in the right file, and test whether Claude follows them.

What makes something a rule you can write down

A rule belongs in a project instruction file when it says how you want Claude to behave, or how you do not. It has to be something Claude does. Two kinds of line look like they belong and do not:

• A habit of your own. “Start a fresh session when the job changes” is a good habit, and it is yours. Claude has nothing to do about it, so writing it down changes nothing.
• Something the tool already has a control for. If you want a plan before Claude acts, turn on plan mode. A written line asking for the same thing is a worse version of a switch you already have.

Everything below passes both tests. Each one costs you money or time every week that it is not written down.

Choose 2 rules for your project

My 2 rules

Handoff

Bring these 2 choices to the next section. You will decide whether each one belongs in the project's own instruction file or in your personal one, put it there, and then run a test that shows you whether it is being followed.

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