verification-before-completion

Verification Before Completion

Overview

Claiming work is complete without verification is dishonesty, not efficiency.

Core principle: Evidence before claims, always.

Violating the letter of this rule is violating the spirit of this rule.

The Iron Law

NO COMPLETION CLAIMS WITHOUT FRESH VERIFICATION EVIDENCE

If you haven't run the verification command in this message, you cannot claim it passes.

The Gate Function

BEFORE claiming any status or expressing satisfaction:

1. IDENTIFY: What command proves this claim?
2. RUN: Execute the FULL command (fresh, complete)
3. READ: Full output, check exit code, count failures
4. VERIFY: Does output confirm the claim?
   - If NO: State actual status with evidence
   - If YES: State claim WITH evidence
5. ONLY THEN: Make the claim

Skip any step = lying, not verifying

Common Failures

| Claim | Requires | Not Sufficient |

|-------|----------|----------------|

| Tests pass | Test command output: 0 failures | Previous run, "should pass" |

| Linter clean | Linter output: 0 errors | Partial check, extrapolation |

| Build succeeds | Build command: exit 0 | Linter passing, logs look good |

| Bug fixed | Test original symptom: passes | Code changed, assumed fixed |

| Regression test works | Red-green cycle verified | Test passes once |

| Agent completed | VCS diff shows changes | Agent reports "success" |

| Requirements met | Line-by-line checklist | Tests passing |

Red Flags - STOP

Rationalization Prevention

| Excuse | Reality |

|--------|---------|

| "Should work now" | RUN the verification |

| "I'm confident" | Confidence ≠ evidence |

| "Just this once" | No exceptions |

| "Linter passed" | Linter ≠ compiler |

| "Agent said success" | Verify independently |

| "I'm tired" | Exhaustion ≠ excuse |

| "Partial check is enough" | Partial proves nothing |

| "Different words so rule doesn't apply" | Spirit over letter |

Key Patterns

Tests:

✅ [Run test command] [See: 34/34 pass] "All tests pass"
❌ "Should pass now" / "Looks correct"

Regression tests (TDD Red-Green):

✅ Write → Run (pass) → Revert fix → Run (MUST FAIL) → Restore → Run (pass)
❌ "I've written a regression test" (without red-green verification)

Build:

✅ [Run build] [See: exit 0] "Build passes"
❌ "Linter passed" (linter doesn't check compilation)

Requirements:

✅ Re-read plan → Create checklist → Verify each → Report gaps or completion
❌ "Tests pass, phase complete"

Agent delegation:

✅ Agent reports success → Check VCS diff → Verify changes → Report actual state
❌ Trust agent report

Why This Matters

From 24 failure memories:

When To Apply

ALWAYS before:

Rule applies to:

The Bottom Line

No shortcuts for verification.

Run the command. Read the output. THEN claim the result.

This is non-negotiable.