How to Integrate i-have-adhd with Copilot, Zed, or Cursor: Complete Setup Guide

Integrate i-have-adhd as an agent skill by installing the skills/i-have-adhd/SKILL.md file into your editor's skill directory, then optionally add the "always-on" snippet for persistent ADHD-friendly formatting.

The i-have-adhd repository by ayghri delivers a lightweight agent skill designed to restructure AI responses for users with ADHD. The core rules are defined in skills/i-have-adhd/SKILL.md, which both Zed Copilot and Cursor can ingest directly. This guide covers integration steps for Zed, Cursor, and Microsoft Copilot.

How i-have-adhd Works Under the Hood

The skill is not a plugin or extension. It is a markdown-based rule set that lives at skills/i-have-adhd/SKILL.md in the repository. When loaded, it instructs the agent to:

• Lead with actionable commands, paths, or snippets
• Number every step with one bounded action each
• Cap lists at 5 items
• Provide concrete time estimates
• Restate progress each turn

The SKILL.md file contains the full rule definition plus a description field that editors use to surface the skill in their UIs.

Zed Copilot Integration

Zed's agent panel supports skills loaded via URL or filesystem. The integration path you choose depends on whether you want automatic updates or offline control.

Method 1: URL-Based Install (Recommended)

Zed can fetch the skill directly from GitHub, ensuring you always run the latest version.

1. Open Agent Panel → Skills manager
2. Select Create skill from URL (or run agent: create skill from url from the command palette)
3. Paste the canonical URL: https://github.com/ayghri/i-have-adhd/blob/main/skills/i-have-adhd/SKILL.md
4. Save with User scope (global) or Project scope (local)
5. Invoke with /i-have-adhd in the Agent Panel

This method is documented in INSTALL.md lines 16-22.

Method 2: Filesystem Copy (Offline)

For air-gapped environments or custom modifications, clone and copy manually:

git clone https://github.com/ayghri/i-have-adhd
cp -R i-have-adhd/skills/i-have-adhd ~/.config/zed/skills/

Zed discovers skills in ~/.config/zed/skills/ automatically on the next session. See INSTALL.md lines 24-30.

Always-On Configuration for Zed

To apply ADHD-friendly rules to every agent session without typing /i-have-adhd, append the output style snippet to Zed's persistent rules file:

cat >> ~/.config/zed/AGENTS.md << 'EOF'

## Output style

The reader has ADHD. Shape every response so it can be acted on:

1. Lead with the answer or next action: command, path, or snippet first.
2. Number multi-step work; one bounded action per step.
3. End with one next action doable in under two minutes.
4. Finish the current issue before raising a new one.
5. Restate progress each turn ("step 3 of 5 done").
6. Give time estimates in concrete units, never "a bit".
7. After a change, show what now works.
8. Errors: state location, cause, and fix. No drama.
9. Cap lists at 5 items.
10. No preamble, no recaps, no closers.
EOF

This configuration is detailed in INSTALL.md lines 44-65.

Cursor Integration

Cursor reads the same SKILL.md structure but stores skills in a different location. You can install via CLI tool or manual copy.

Method 1: CLI Install (Recommended)

The npx skills utility handles Cursor-specific paths automatically:

npx skills add ayghri/i-have-adhd -a cursor -y

Verify installation:

npx skills list

This copies the skill to ~/.cursor/skills/ as documented in INSTALL.md lines 73-79 and 92-98.

Method 2: Manual Filesystem Copy

Avoiding npm? Clone and copy directly:

git clone https://github.com/ayghri/i-have-adhd
mkdir -p ~/.cursor/skills
cp -R i-have-adhd/skills/i-have-adhd ~/.cursor/skills/

Cursor discovers the skill on the next launch. See INSTALL.md lines 84-90.

Always-On Configuration for Cursor

Cursor supports persistent rules at user or project level. Add the output style snippet to either:

• User level: Settings → Rules → User Rules
• Project level: Create .cursor/rules/i-have-adhd.md with alwaysApply: true

The full snippet matches the Zed version above. Cursor-specific installation guidance appears in INSTALL.md lines 112-135.

Microsoft Copilot Integration

Copilot in VS Code does not use the same agent skill architecture as Zed or Cursor. However, you can achieve similar results:

Option 1: Custom Instructions File

VS Code 1.90+ supports .github/copilot-instructions.md. Create this file in your repository root and paste the output style rules from SKILL.md. Copilot incorporates these instructions into every chat context.

Option 2: Workspace Prompts

Add the ADHD formatting rules to VS Code's User Settings under chat.experimental.instructions. This applies globally across all projects.

Quick Reference: Integration Commands

Editor	Install Command	Skill Path	Always-On Config
Zed	URL or cp to ~/.config/zed/skills/	~/.config/zed/skills/i-have-adhd/	~/.config/zed/AGENTS.md
Cursor	npx skills add ayghri/i-have-adhd -a cursor -y	~/.cursor/skills/i-have-adhd/	Settings → Rules or .cursor/rules/
Copilot (VS Code)	Manual .github/copilot-instructions.md	N/A	User settings or repo-specific file

Key Source Files

Understanding the repository structure helps with troubleshooting:

• skills/i-have-adhd/SKILL.md — Canonical skill definition containing rules and description metadata
• INSTALL.md — Platform-specific installation steps (Zed section lines 16-65, Cursor section lines 73-135)
• .cursor/skills/i-have-adhd/ — Example of where Cursor expects installed skills

Summary

• i-have-adhd is a markdown-based agent skill, not a compiled plugin
• Zed Copilot accepts the skill via URL (skills/i-have-adhd/SKILL.md) or filesystem copy to ~/.config/zed/skills/
• Cursor installs via npx skills add or manual copy to ~/.cursor/skills/
• Always-on mode requires adding the output style snippet to persistent rules: ~/.config/zed/AGENTS.md for Zed, Settings → Rules for Cursor
• Copilot (VS Code) uses .github/copilot-instructions.md for equivalent functionality

Frequently Asked Questions

Does i-have-adhd work with GitHub Copilot in Neovim or JetBrains IDEs?

Neovim and JetBrains plugins for Copilot do not yet support the custom instructions file feature. You can approximate the behavior by manually pasting the output style rules into chat prompts, but there is no persistent always-on configuration for these editors as of the latest release.

Can I modify the skill rules for my specific workflow?

Yes. After copying skills/i-have-adhd/SKILL.md to your local skills directory, edit the markdown file directly. Changes take effect on the next agent session. Keep backups, as updates from the upstream repository will overwrite local modifications if you use the URL-based install method.

Why does the always-on snippet contain the same rules as the skill?

The skill file (SKILL.md) and the always-on snippet serve different scopes. The skill is invoked on demand with /i-have-adhd. The snippet in AGENTS.md or Cursor Rules is prepended to every conversation automatically. According to INSTALL.md lines 44-65 and 112-135, using both together ensures consistent formatting even when you forget to activate the skill explicitly.

How do I verify the skill is loaded correctly?

Zed: Type /i-have-adhd in the Agent Panel; the skill description from SKILL.md should autocomplete. Cursor: Run npx skills list and confirm i-have-adhd appears. Both: Ask the agent to format a response; valid output starts with a numbered step and concrete time estimate, with no preamble.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "instagit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "instagit@latest"]
    }
  }
}