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5. Build a Custom Workflow Skill

Action Step

Complete this before moving on.

Pick a workflow you've repeated at least twice, have your agent create a skill file for it, then test that skill in a fresh Slack thread with new input data.

Comment in Slack

Post your answer in your onboarding channel.

What workflow did you turn into a skill, and how does capturing it as a reusable skill change the way you think about building on your agent over time?

Training Guide

Full circle. In Section 3, you built a workflow, then captured it as a skill for Claude Code. Now do the same thing for your OpenClaw agent.

Exercise​

Step 1: Pick a workflow you've been doing repeatedly

Look at what you've done in T1-T4 of this section — which workflow would you want to repeat?

Examples:

  • Transcript processing with specific formatting for your clients
  • Client research prep with your preferred structure
  • Dashboard generation with your preferred chart types and data format
  • Weekly status report compilation
  • Or pick something from your actual daily work that you keep doing manually

Step 2: Tell your agent to reflect on the workflow

"I want to create a skill based on [the workflow we just did / a workflow I do regularly]. Walk me through the steps you'd follow if I asked you to do this again."

Let the agent lay out the process — review it, adjust, add steps it missed.

Step 3: Create the skill

"Now create a skill file based on this workflow. Include: numbered steps, expected inputs, clarifying questions to ask before starting, output format, and quality checks."

The agent writes the skill to its workspace.

Step 4: Test the skill

Start a new thread (fresh session). Invoke the skill: /skill [your-skill-name] or "Use the [skill name] skill to process this." Feed it new input — different data than what you used to create the skill.

Does it follow the steps? Does the output match what you expected?

Step 5: Iterate on the skill itself

  • "The skill missed [specific thing]. How should I rewrite the instructions?"
  • "Add a step between step 3 and step 4 that [does X]"
  • "The output format should be [different format]"
  • "Fix the skill, not just the output" — same principle from S3

Step 6: Push to the team (optional)

If your skill is useful for the whole team, ask your agent to push it to the Skills and SOPs repo via GitHub. Or share the skill content with the tech team to add to other agents.

The Full Circle Moment​

In Section 2, you learned what skills are. In Section 3, you built one for Claude Code. In Section 4, you learned how skills work in OpenClaw. Now you've built one for your Slack agent. Same concept, four sections later, and now it's second nature.

Every skill you build makes your agent smarter. This is the compounding asset — the more you invest, the more capable your agent becomes.

What to Submit​

  • The skill file content (copy from your agent's output)
  • Screenshot of the skill being tested in a fresh thread
  • Brief description: "What does this skill do and when would you use it?"