Claude Cowork prompts that work a folder and wait for you
Point Cowork at one folder, one job, and a stop line before anything leaves the machine. Official Cowork only. You still send, pay, and delete.
In short: This page contains 15 copy-paste ready prompts, organized into 5 categories with a description and pro tip for each. The first 5 prompts are free instantly, no signup needed. Hand-curated and tested by the AI Academy team.
Start the job
3 promptsOne folder, one outcome
1/15✨ What it does
Claude runs one outcome in [PATH] and stops if a file is missing. Check the deliverable in the folder. Do not let it roam the disk.
You are in Claude Cowork. Folder: [PATH]. Outcome: [OUTCOME]. Do not leave this folder. Do not send email, pay, or delete. If a file is missing, stop and list it. Deliverable: [DELIVERABLE].
Pro tip: Name the folder. Cowork with the whole home directory is how you leak a tax PDF into a deck.
Read-only first pass
2/15✨ What it does
Claude lists files in [PATH] and flags secret-looking names. Move secrets out before a write job. Keep the list.
Cowork, read-only. Folder: [PATH]. List files, dates, and a one-line guess of what each is for. Do not write, move, or rename. Flag anything that looks like secrets (keys, payroll).
Pro tip: Read-only first. Every time. Write jobs come second.
Stop line
3/15✨ What it does
Claude takes [JOB] in [PATH] and writes WAIT instead of send, pay, or delete. You do those actions. Keep the WAIT note.
Add this stop line to the job: never send, never pay, never delete, never change production. If you would need one of those, write WAIT and what you wanted to do. Folder: [PATH]. Job: [JOB].
Pro tip: If the job includes send, split it. Cowork prepares. You click.
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Useful jobs
3 promptsWeekly folder brief
4/15✨ What it does
Claude writes WEEK-BRIEF.md from file names and dates in [PATH]. Read it, then delete any guessed bullet. Pin the brief if it is true.
Cowork: from [PATH], write WEEK-BRIEF.md: 8 bullets of what changed since [DATE], files that look stale, and 3 open questions. Use only file names and dates you can see. [VERIFY] guesses.
Pro tip: Dates from the filesystem beat vibes from last month's chat.
Receipt pack
5/15✨ What it does
Claude tables receipts it can actually read and [VERIFY]s the rest. You type the missing amounts. Do not let it invent $47.00.
Cowork: in [PATH], group receipt-like files by month into a table: file, date if visible, vendor if visible, amount if visible. If a field is unreadable, [VERIFY]. Do not email anyone. Do not invent amounts.
Pro tip: Unreadable PDF plus a helpful model equals a fake book. [VERIFY] is the feature.
Draft from a folder of notes
6/15✨ What it does
Claude writes [DELIVERABLE] from [PATH] with file cites and [VERIFY] headers, saved as a .draft if the out file exists. Diff it before you replace.
Cowork: write [DELIVERABLE] using only files in [PATH]. Cite file names. If a section has no file, leave a [VERIFY] header and skip prose. Save as [OUT FILE]. Do not overwrite [OUT FILE] if it exists; write [OUT FILE].draft.md.
Pro tip: Never overwrite. Draft beside. You rename.
Dangerous jobs, tamed
3 promptsRename plan, do not rename yet
7/15✨ What it does
Claude writes RENAME-PLAN.md and waits for APPLY. Read every row. Type APPLY only if there are no collisions you care about.
Cowork: propose a rename map for [PATH] (old -> new). Save as RENAME-PLAN.md. Do not rename until I type APPLY. If two files would collide, stop.
Pro tip: Renames are how you lose the only good version. Plan file first.
Delete plan, do not delete
8/15✨ What it does
Claude writes DELETE-CANDIDATES.md only. You delete each listed file by hand. If a why line is thin, keep that file.
Cowork: list files in [PATH] that look like duplicates or exports. Save DELETE-CANDIDATES.md with why. Do not delete. I will delete by hand.
Pro tip: Cowork should not delete. Not on a good day. Not on a dare.
Mail merge prep, do not send
9/15✨ What it does
Claude writes PREVIEW.md of 5 messages and masks emails. You send from your mail client if the previews are right.
Cowork: from [SHEET] and [TEMPLATE] in [PATH], build a preview of 5 messages as PREVIEW.md. No sends. Mask emails after the first 3 characters.
Pro tip: A send skill is how a half-right status hits 40 clients. Preview is the product.
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Cowork vs the rest
3 promptsCowork vs Project vs Skill
10/15✨ What it does
Claude picks Cowork, Project, or Skill from [JOB] and [PATH]. Use that one. Do not run the same job in all three.
I have [JOB] and files in [PATH]. Pick Claude Cowork, a Claude Project, or a Skill. 6-row table. If the files must be touched on disk, pick Cowork. If they are uploads in chat, pick Project.
Pro tip: Cowork is the disk. Projects are the thread. Skills are the playbook. Mix them on purpose, not by panic.
When Cowork is the wrong tool
11/15✨ What it does
Claude says when Cowork is wrong for [JOB] and names the human step. Do that step yourself. Do not paste a password into Cowork.
Tell me if Cowork is wrong for [JOB]. Wrong if I need a live browser login I will not hand over, a payment, or a production deploy. Suggest the human step instead.
Pro tip: If a login, 2FA, or bank is involved, you take the machine. That is the rule.
Plugin or not
12/15✨ What it does
Claude lists 4 enable-questions for [PLUGIN]. Answer them in order. If send power is yes, do not enable it for [JOB].
I saw a Cowork plugin for [PLUGIN]. Job: [JOB]. List 4 questions I should answer before enabling it (data it sees, send power, who made it, how I turn it off).
Pro tip: Plugins inherit your files. Treat them like a contractor with a USB stick.
Review
3 promptsShow your work
13/15✨ What it does
Claude writes WHAT-YOU-DID.md after the job. Read it before you trust the deliverable. If guessed is not empty, fix those bits yourself.
After the job, write WHAT-YOU-DID.md: files read, files written, files you refused to touch, and anything you guessed. Folder [PATH].
Pro tip: If this file is missing, the job did not happen the way you think.
Diff the deliverable
14/15✨ What it does
Claude diffs against [PREVIOUS] or stops. Keep the number-move list. If previous is missing, you do not have a diff.
Diff [OUT FILE] against [PREVIOUS] in [PATH]. List added, removed, numbers that moved. If you cannot see [PREVIOUS], say so and stop.
Pro tip: Name both files. Diff against memory is fiction.
Handoff to a human
15/15✨ What it does
Claude writes a 12-line handoff from [NOTES]. Send it with the folder path. The teammate sends the email, not Cowork.
Write a 12-line handoff for [PERSON]: job, folder, deliverable path, stop line, what I still need to send. From [NOTES] only.
Pro tip: The last line is who clicks send. If that line is Claude, rewrite the handoff.
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