---
id: "concept-methodology-body"
type: "concept"
source_timestamps: ["10:42:00", "10:50:00", "11:25:00", "11:40:00", "11:55:00"]
tags: ["prompt-engineering", "frameworks"]
related: ["concept-skill-anatomy", "claim-linear-skills-brittle", "framework-skill-methodology", "contrarian-linear-steps-fail", "action-document-edge-cases"]
definition: "The core content of a skill file, which must include reasoning frameworks, output formats, edge cases, examples, and lean constraints to function reliably."
sources: ["s43-file-format-agreement"]
sourceVaultSlug: "s43-file-format-agreement"
originDay: 43
---
# The 5-Part Methodology Body

## Definition

The core content of a `skill.md` file is not a list of steps. It must include **reasoning frameworks, output formats, edge cases, examples, and lean constraints** to function reliably for an agent caller.

## The Five Parts

The methodology section of a skill cannot simply be a list of step-by-step instructions. The speaker outlines five critical components — formalized as the [[framework-skill-methodology]]:

1. **Reasoning** — Provide the LLM with frameworks, quality criteria, and principles rather than just linear steps. This makes the skill less brittle (see [[claim-linear-skills-brittle]]).
2. **Specified Output Format** — Explicitly state whether the output should be markdown, Excel, PDF, etc., and which fields it must contain. This is the [[concept-skills-as-contracts]] principle in practice.
3. **Edge Cases** — Document the exceptions and nuances that a human would handle via common sense. The LLM will not guess them. See [[action-document-edge-cases]].
4. **Examples** — Provide pattern-matching references so the LLM knows what *good* looks like.
5. **Lean Constraints** — Keep the skill file concise (ideally **under 150 lines**) to avoid bloating the LLM's context window and confusing the model with competing instructions.

## Why Linear Steps Fail

See [[contrarian-linear-steps-fail]] — handing an LLM only *step 1, step 2, step 3* limits its ability to generalize when reality deviates from the happy path.

## Related

- [[framework-skill-methodology]] — the canonical 5-part framework
- [[claim-linear-skills-brittle]] — the underlying claim
- [[concept-quantitative-skill-testing]] — how to verify the methodology actually works