Use this guide to set up Claude as an agent that does work for you.
At the end you have:
Time: about 90 minutes. You do this one time.
If you use ChatGPT, use the ChatGPT guide.
The Claude desktop app has three tabs. Use the tab that matches the task.
| Tab | Use it to | It can reach |
|---|---|---|
| Chat | Think, draft and ask questions | What you paste or upload, and connected apps |
| Cowork | Give Claude a task to finish on its own | Connected apps, folders on your computer, your browser |
| Code | Build a tool, a script, a dashboard or a website | A folder on your computer |
Use Chat only to think. Give tasks to Cowork. Build tools in Code.
In some versions of the app, Chat and Cowork use one message box. Any conversation can then do a Cowork task.
Use the desktop app, not the browser. Only the desktop app can reach the files, browser and apps on your computer.
Result: you see the Chat, Cowork and Code tabs.
On Free, Pro and Max plans, Anthropic can use your chats to train its models. Do this step before you share work material.
Result: Anthropic does not use your new chats for training.
Claude reads your instructions before each conversation and each task.
Result: Claude knows your role and your rules before you type.
Connectors let Claude read your tools. You do not copy and paste.
You can also add connectors from the + menu in the message box. To remove a connector, go back to Connectors.
Result: Claude can read your calendar and email. It asks you before it sends or changes anything.
The mode selector is in the message box.
CAUTION: Use Manual for any task that sends messages as you, spends money or changes important files.
Claude always asks before it deletes a file.
Your first agent sends you a brief each week.
/schedule. Or open Scheduled in the left sidebar.Every [day] at [time], read my calendar for the next seven days and my email from the last seven days.
Give me:
1. The meetings that need preparation, and what to prepare.
2. The emails that wait for my reply.
3. What I delivered last week.
Then ask me what changed because of that work. Add my answer to a running log.
Scheduled tasks in Cowork run in the cloud. Your computer can be off.
Result: each week you get a brief, and your log of delivered work grows.
Code builds software from your description. You do not need to know how to code. Start with a small tool that you will use.
Build a one-page dashboard that I open in my browser.
It reads my weekly delivery log and shows what I delivered each month and what changed as a result.
CAUTION: Use a new, empty folder. Code can change any file in the folder that you choose.
Result: you have a tool in your folder, and it works.
To run a Code task on a schedule, open Routines in the sidebar and click New routine. A Local routine runs only when your computer is on and the app is open.
If you give Claude the same instructions more than twice, make a skill.
Claude already has skills for Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF files. In the Code tab, type / to see your skills.
Result: Claude does that task your way each time.
CAUTION: Install plugins only from sources you trust. Some plugins run code on your computer with your permissions.
Plugins work in Chat, Cowork and Code.
Result: each task starts with the context of that work.
Do this if you want Cowork to work on files on your computer.
about_me.md, my_voice.md and my_rules.md in About me.## BEFORE EVERY TASK
1. Read About me/. No task starts without reading it.
2. If the task relates to a project, read everything in the matching Projects/ subfolder before proceeding.
3. If the task involves a content type with a matching pattern in Templates/, study that template's structure first. Use the structure. Don't copy the content.
## FOLDER PROTOCOL
Read-only, never create, edit, or delete anything in these:
- About me/ → my identity and writing rules.
- Templates/ → proven structures to reuse as patterns.
- Projects/ → my briefs, references, and finished work, organised by project.
Write folder, the only place you deliver work:
- OUTPUTS/ → everything you create goes here, one subfolder per project.
## NAMING CONVENTION
All files you create follow this format: project_content-type_v1.ext
Increment the version number if a file with the same name already exists.
## OPERATING RULES
- If the brief is unclear or incomplete, ask me before proceeding. Don't fill gaps with generic filler.
- Show me a plan before executing anything that touches more than one file.
- Never delete files anywhere.
- Never overwrite a file without asking, even in OUTPUTS.
CAUTION: Keep the last two rules. With these rules, Claude does not delete or overwrite your files.