One Project, One Folder
The folder you open is the agent's workplace and its cage — it sees nothing outside. A fresh folder per project keeps its attention on your task and your unrelated files out of reach.
Why it works
The folder you open is the agent's entire world: its workspace, its context, and its cage. A dedicated folder per project keeps its attention on your task, keeps your tax documents out of an AI's working set, and makes cleanup trivial — delete the folder, the project is gone. Blurring this boundary is the root of both messy results and real privacy mistakes.
How to do it
- Before starting any new project, create a fresh empty folder and name it after the outcome.
- In the Code tab, choose Open Folder and select it.
- Put INTO the folder only what the project needs: texts, images, exports, briefs.
- Keep contracts, client PII, and unrelated documents OUT — the agent can read whatever is inside.
- Starting something unrelated? New folder, new session — never reuse a folder as a junk drawer.
- When a project ends, archive or delete the folder; nothing else on your machine referenced it.
Copy this
prompt
List every file you can currently see in this project folder, one per line, and flag anything that looks like it doesn't belong to this project.
What to watch for
- Never open your Desktop, Documents root, or home directory — you'd hand the agent everything you own and drown it in irrelevant context.
- The cage has doors you can open: connectors and explicit paths extend its reach. The folder boundary is a default, not a guarantee — treat what's inside as visible.
Sources
Original: conon.aiDocumentation: code.claude.com