AGENTS/skills/reflection/references/signal-patterns.md

User Correction Signal Patterns

Patterns that indicate the user is correcting or refining the agent's behavior.

High Priority Signals (Explicit Corrections)

Direct corrections:

• "No, that's not right..."
• "Actually, you should..."
• "Don't do X, instead do Y"
• "That's incorrect..."
• "You misunderstood..."

Explicit instructions:

• "Always..." / "Never..."
• "From now on..."
• "Make sure to..."
• "Remember to..."

Repeated clarifications:

• User re-explains the same point multiple times
• User provides same instruction in different words
• User corrects same mistake in multiple sessions

Workflow corrections:

• "You skipped step X"
• "You should have done Y first"
• "That's the wrong order"

Medium Priority Signals (Effective Patterns)

Positive reinforcement:

• "That's perfect"
• "Exactly what I needed"
• "Great, keep doing it this way"
• "Yes, that's the right approach"

User adopts the pattern:

• User requests same workflow multiple times
• User references previous successful interaction
• User asks to "do it like last time"

Implicit preferences:

• User consistently asks for specific format
• User regularly requests certain tools/approaches
• Patterns in how user phrases requests

Low Priority Signals (Observations)

General feedback:

• "Hmm, interesting..."
• "I see..."
• Neutral acknowledgments

Exploratory questions:

• "What if we tried..."
• "Could you also..."
• "I wonder if..."

Context clues:

• Time of day patterns
• Task batching preferences
• Communication style preferences

Environment signals:

• Tools user prefers
• File organization patterns
• Workflow preferences

Anti-Patterns (Not Corrections)

Questions about capabilities:

• "Can you do X?" (not a correction, just inquiry)

Exploration:

• "Let's try something different" (exploration, not correction)

Context changes:

• "Now let's work on Y" (topic shift, not correction)