Nuhu Shaik

Free playbook

The Claude Code Prompts Playbook

Ten rules that get Claude Code to build what you mean, check its own work and finish the job. Every prompt ready to copy.

Nuhu Shaik2 min readnuhushaik.com/resources/prompts

Building with Claude Code? I can help on a 1:1 call.

Request a call

01

Questions first

Before it writes a line, Claude asks you, shows you options and finds the holes.

The problem

Claude fills every gap with a guess, runs with its first idea and can agree with yours, holes and all.

You
Build a booking app for my barbershop.
AI
Great idea! Building it now: online booking, card payments and a loyalty card.
  • GuessedCard payments. You only take cash.
  • First ideaA whole app, when a booking link would do.
  • AgreedNever asked about no-shows, the real problem.

Built on guesses, with nothing to compare and no pushback.

The fix

Remember this

Let it question you. Then question it.

  1. Ask meUp to 5 questions before it starts
  2. 3 waysThe safe bet, the bold swing and the one you missed
  3. Find holesThe weak spots, before you commit

Done right

You
Build a booking app for my barbershop. Ask me up to 5 questions first.
AI
  1. WhoWho books: your customers, or you for them?
  2. WhatCash only, or cards too?
  3. LookShould it match your shop’s sign and Instagram?
  4. NeverAnything it must never do, like double-book a chair?
  5. GreatWhat would make it a win a month from now?

Then three ways to do it

  1. Safe bet

    A ready-made booking link in your bio

    Good
    Live today
    Risk
    A monthly fee
    Effort
    Easy

  2. Bold swing

    Your own app with a waitlist for empty chairs

    Good
    Fills every slot
    Risk
    Weeks of work
    Effort
    Hard

  3. One you missedRecommended

    Text reminders for the bookings you already take

    Good
    Cuts no-shows
    Risk
    No new customers
    Effort
    Easy

The weak spot: an app doesn’t stop no-shows. Reminders do.

In Claude Code, press Shift+Tab until you see “plan mode on”: it reads, asks and plans, but doesn’t edit your code. For one prompt, start it with /plan.

Copy these prompts

Ask me first
I want to build [your idea, in a sentence or two].

Before you build anything, ask me up to 5 numbered questions so you understand exactly what I need. Cover who it's for, what it needs to do, how it should look, what it must never do, and what a great result looks like. Don't start until I've answered all of them.

Three ways to do it
I want to [what you want to build or change].

Before you build anything, give me 3 genuinely different ways to do this: the safe bet, the bold swing, and the one I haven't thought of. For each, tell me what it's good at, its biggest risk, and how hard it is. Then recommend one. Don't build until I pick.

Tear my idea apart
My idea: [your idea, in a few sentences]

Act like a smart friend who wants this to succeed. Before you build anything, tell me the 3 biggest weaknesses in this idea, the assumption most likely to be wrong, and what someone who'd say no would say. Then tell me how to make it stronger.

Free playbook

Where should I send it?

The rest opens right here, and I’ll email you the link and the PDF for your computer.

  • The brief
  • Proof
  • Effort and handovers

No spam. You’ll get the playbook now, then new guides and the occasional offer from Nuhu Ventures Inc. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy and contact details

02

The brief

The whole job in one message: the goal, a picture of the look and what to leave alone.

The problem

Feed it steps one at a time and describe the look in words, and you get a generic page plus changes you never asked for.

You
1. Add a pricing page
You
2. Make it modern and clean
You
3. Add a sign-up button
AI
Done! I also renamed a few components and updated the font across the site.

What changed

  • Pricing.tsxThree identical cards
  • Button.tsxRenamed to PrimaryButton
  • globals.cssA new font on every page
  • Nav.tsxThe menu stopped opening on phones

You asked for one page. It changed four files and broke the menu.

The fix

Remember this

The goal, not the steps. A picture, not words. Nothing else touched.

  1. The goalWhat, who for, why, and what success looks like. It plans the steps
  2. A pictureA screenshot of a design you like says more than any adjective
  3. A fenceOnly what the task needs. Anything else, it tells you at the end

Done right

Goal
A pricing page for my meal-planning app.
Who it’s for
Busy parents, mostly on their phones.
Why it matters
It’s where people decide to pay.
Success
They see the difference between plans in five seconds.
Constraints
Use my Button component. Nothing else changes.

pricing-i-like.pngMake mine feel like this. Not its colours, logo or words.

  • Pricing.tsxNew page. Nothing else touched
AI
Done. I noticed the Terms link in the footer goes nowhere. I left it alone: want me to fix it next?

To give Claude Code a screenshot, paste it with Ctrl+V (Ctrl, even on a Mac), drag the file in, or type its path.

Copy these prompts

The whole task
Here's what I want built.
Goal: [what it is]
Who it's for: [the user]
Why it matters: [the reason]
Success looks like: [the result]
Constraints: [anything that must stay true]

Work out the steps yourself and keep going until it's finished.

Match this look
[Attach a screenshot of an app or site you like]

Make mine feel like this. Match the spacing, layout, and font sizes. Don't copy the colours, logo, or content.

Don’t touch the rest
[the fix or change you want]

Only change what this task needs. Don't fix unrelated bugs, don't refactor other code, don't rename things, and don't add features I didn't ask for. If you notice something else that needs fixing, tell me at the end instead of changing it.

Want a second pair of eyes on your prompts? I’ll go through them with you on a 1:1 call.

03

Proof

Write down what “done” means before it starts. Then it checks every line itself.

The problem

It stops when it feels done, not when it is, and says “it works” without ever checking.

AI
Done! The sign-up form works.

What it actually checked:

  • Opened the appNo
  • Filled in the formNo
  • Tried it on a phoneNo

It read its own code and called it done.

The fix

Remember this

Write down “done” first. Then make it prove every line.

  1. Done whenWhat it does, how it looks, desktop and phone
  2. CheckIt opens it, clicks everything and tries the main flows
  3. FixIt fixes what breaks, then tests again
  4. ReportOnly what it actually tested

Done right

Done when

  1. A new account saves and logs you inSigned up twice
  2. A wrong email shows an errorTried three
  3. It works on desktop and phoneThe button was cut off on the phone. Fixed, tested again
  4. The welcome email arrivesNot tested: it needs a real inbox

Want it to open your app and click through it itself? Give Claude Code a browser: install Claude in Chrome, then type /chrome.

Copy these prompts

Done when
This task is done when:
- [it does X]
- [it looks like Y]
- It works on desktop and mobile
- [anything else]

Don't stop or tell me it's finished until every item is true.

Check your own work
When you're finished, check your own work before telling me. Open it on desktop and mobile, click every button and link, and try the main flows: [the main things people do, like sign up and pay]. Fix anything that breaks and test it again. Only tell me what you actually tested.

04

Effort and handovers

Set how hard it thinks with a setting, not a phrase. Start a fresh chat without losing a thing.

The problem

Two old habits hold you back: asking it to “think step by step”, and keeping one chat going until it’s full.

You
Think step by step. Think carefully. Fix the login bug.

Thinking is already on, and these words aren’t a setting.

  1. Message 1YouAlways use my Button component.
  2. Message 186AII made a new button for the form.

As a chat fills up, it forgets early rules and makes more mistakes.

The fix

Remember this

Set the effort. Hand over, then start fresh.

  1. /efforthigh for hard tasks, low for quick ones. It stays set until you change it
  2. ultrathinkPut the word in one prompt for one extra-hard step
  3. HandoverThe goal, the decisions, what’s left and what failed, saved as a file
  4. Fresh chat/clear, then “Read HANDOVER.md and continue.”

Done right

Effort, by task

/effort low
A rename, a small change. Quick question? Add “Answer directly.”
/effort medium
Everyday features. The default on Opus 5.5
/effort high
Bugs and tricky edge cases
ultrathink
One hard step, without changing the setting

HANDOVER.md

Goal
Online orders for my bakery’s site.
Where we are
Menu and cart work. Checkout is half done.
Decisions
Stripe Checkout, so card details never touch the site.
My preferences
Short answers. Ask before adding a library.
What’s left
1. Finish checkout 2. Order emails 3. Test on phones
Didn’t work
A custom card form: it broke on Safari twice.
You
Read HANDOVER.md and continue.
AI
Picking up at checkout. I won’t try a custom card form again.

Start fresh between tasks, or once you’ve corrected it twice on the same thing. Deep in one hard problem? Keep the chat: the history helps.

Copy this prompt

Write the handover
I'm starting a fresh chat. Write a short handover doc for it and save it as [a file name, like HANDOVER.md]: the goal, where we are now, key decisions and why we made them, my preferences, what's left in order, and what we already tried that didn't work, so the new chat doesn't repeat it.

Start the fresh chat

/clear

Read HANDOVER.md and continue.

Two messages: the first empties the chat, the second picks the work back up.

1:1 Claude Code call with Nuhu Shaik

Want help using this on your project?

We’ll go through how you use Claude Code, and I’ll show you what to change so it builds what you mean the first time.

  • One hour, live
  • On your own project
  • CAD 200
  • How to brief Claude Code on your next feature
  • Which rules belong in your CLAUDE.md
  • How to make it check its own work

Want help using this on your project? Request a 1:1 call at nuhushaik.com/resources/prompts#call

Saves me hours every day. You help me a lot.
Gibi Saini · Media agency
3,200
monthly active users on Ayah
700
paid users on Drum Breaker
Caterpillar
web HMI for power systems
Takes a minute. I read every request myself.Not worth it? Tell me within 24 hours for a full refund.

Request a 1:1 call

I’ll reply myself within two business days.
Step 1 of 4
One call, or regular calls?