The Claude Code workflow that actually works

December 23, 2025

Part of the Claude Code in Practice series

Series outline: 1. Why Claude Code is different • 2. How Claude reads your codebase • 3. Writing tasks Claude can complete • 4. Plan mode workflow • 5. Real-world scenarios • 6. MCP and skills • 7. Optimizing for speed • 8. Building your workflow

After watching engineering teams adopt AI coding tools over the past months, a clear pattern emerged: the teams that succeed follow a similar workflow. This is not theory—it is what works in practice. You have learned the concepts: how Claude reads code, how to frame tasks, how plan mode works, where Claude excels. Now it is time to synthesize this into a workflow that actually sticks. The goal is not rigid process, but sustainable habits.

The spectrum: delegation versus collaboration

At one extreme, you delegate everything to Claude and hope it works. At the other extreme, you micromanage every detail and barely save time. Neither extreme works well. The sweet spot is in the middle: you delegate implementation, but you stay involved in decisions and verification.

Plan mode naturally puts you in this sweet spot. You describe what you want (delegation), Claude plans how to do it (implementation), you review the approach (collaboration), and Claude executes (delegation again). The cycle balances autonomy with oversight.

The workflow looks like this:

Plan mode is not overhead. It is the foundation that makes delegation reliable.

Building your workflow around plan mode

The core workflow is simple:

1. Frame a clear task with specific scope
2. Let Claude explore and create a plan
3. Review the plan, slice it if needed
4. Approve and execute one slice
5. Verify the results
6. Iterate on the next slice

This cycle becomes automatic with practice. You stop thinking about “should I use plan mode” and just work this way naturally. The cycle is fast enough that it does not feel like overhead, but structured enough that you avoid costly mistakes.

Common anti-patterns to avoid

As you build your workflow, watch for these pitfalls:

Skipping plan review: Approving plans without reading them defeats the purpose. Even a quick skim catches obvious problems. Take the 10 seconds to review.

Over-slicing: Breaking a 3-file change into 10 tiny slices adds more overhead than value. Slice when the plan feels risky or large, not by default.

Under-slicing: Approving a 20-file change all at once means debugging becomes painful when something breaks. Find the balance.

Vague tasks: Going back to “fix the bug” instead of being specific. Clear tasks lead to clear plans.

Ignoring speed: Not using .claudeignore, asking for broad exploration when you need focused changes. Keep context small for faster iterations.

These patterns emerge from experience. You will make these mistakes. The key is recognizing them and adjusting your workflow.

How experienced users think differently

Developers who use Claude Code effectively share common patterns:

They trust but verify. They delegate confidently because they know the plan review step will catch problems. They do not second-guess every detail, but they do not blindly approve either.

They think in slices. When facing a large task, they instinctively break it into reviewable chunks. Each slice is independently testable.

They frontload clarity. They spend 30 seconds making their task description specific, which saves minutes of back-and-forth later.

They know when to stop. If Claude is struggling after two iterations, they either clarify the task or do it manually. They do not force Claude to solve everything.

They optimize for their workflow. They add MCP servers for data they frequently need. They create skills for repetitive tasks. They tune their setup based on what actually slows them down.

Iterative improvement with plan mode as foundation

Your workflow will evolve. You will discover which types of tasks Claude handles well in your codebase. You will learn which files to exclude, which tasks to slice, which patterns to standardize.

The foundation stays constant: plan mode gives you a structured way to delegate work while maintaining oversight. Everything else adapts to your context.

Start simple. Use the basic plan → review → execute → verify cycle. Add extensions and optimizations only when you identify clear friction points. Your workflow should feel natural, not prescribed.

The evolving landscape

AI coding is still evolving rapidly. New capabilities appear regularly. The models get better. The tools improve. What works today might change tomorrow.

This is why building your workflow around principles matters more than memorizing specific techniques. The principle of “review before execution” will remain valuable even as the tools change. The principle of “focused context leads to better results” stays relevant regardless of model improvements.

Stay adaptable. Experiment with new features. But keep the core workflow grounded in practices that make you effective today: clear tasks, plan mode, iterative execution, and constant verification.

The key insight

Claude Code is not about replacing your skills. It is about amplifying them. You still make the important decisions. You still verify the results. You still own the code. Claude handles the tedious parts: searching across files, applying patterns systematically, maintaining consistency.

The plan → review → slice → iterate workflow is how you maintain control while delegating effectively. Master this cycle and you will find yourself working faster, making fewer mistakes, and enjoying the development process more.

That is the goal: not to let AI write all your code, but to free yourself from tedious work so you can focus on the problems that actually require your judgment and creativity.

Previous: ← Optimizing for speed | Start of series: Why Claude Code is different →