Verification Before Completion

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

BEFORE claiming any status:

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?
   - NO → State actual status with evidence
   - YES → State claim WITH evidence
5. ONLY THEN: Make the claim

Skip any step = lying, not verifying

What Requires Verification

Claim	Requires	NOT Sufficient
Tests pass	Test command output: 0 failures	Previous run, "should pass"
Linter clean	Linter output: 0 errors	Partial check
Build succeeds	Build command: exit 0	Linter passing
Bug fixed	Test original symptom: passes	Code changed, assumed fixed
Requirements met	Line-by-line checklist verified	"Tests passing"

Red Flags — STOP

If you catch yourself:

• Using "should", "probably", "seems to"
• Expressing satisfaction before verification ("Great!", "Done!")
• About to commit/push without verification
• Relying on a previous run
• Thinking "just this once"

ALL of these mean: Run the verification command NOW.

Common Rationalizations

Excuse	Reality
"Should work now"	RUN the verification
"I'm confident"	Confidence ≠ evidence
"Just this once"	No exceptions
"Linter passed"	Linter ≠ compiler ≠ tests
"Partial check is enough"	Partial proves nothing

Key Patterns

Tests:

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

Build:

✅ [Run build] → [See: exit 0] → "Build passes"
❌ "Linter passed so build should be fine"

Requirements:

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

The Bottom Line

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

This is non-negotiable.