How to set up Claude Code
6 steps, about 10 minutes today, then a week of checking. We put the approvals on before anything else.
Install it
Follow the install steps for your system in Anthropic's docs, and install it only from Anthropic's own links.
Protect your work first
Work in a project tracked in Git, with everything committed, so you can undo any change. Keep its default permission mode, which asks before it edits files or runs commands, and don't use a mode that skips it.
Start in a real project
Open a project and run it there. It asks you to log in on first use.
Add project rules
Put your standards in a short CLAUDE.md, and keep it short.
Ask before it changes anything
Start by asking it to explain the codebase.
Read this repo and explain how it's put together. Then suggest the smallest change that would fix this problem. Don't make changes yet.End in a pull request
Keep a person on every merge.
Our stake: Navigate helps clients set up agents like this one. Claude helps research and draft this site, so a person reviews this page. How we work
Claude Code is set up.
Now give it one week. This plan keeps it safe and useful.
- Day 1Try your first jobAsk it to explain your codebase, using the prompt below.
- Day 2Fix one small thingPick a small bug, and read every change before you accept it.
- Day 3Check its workRun your tests, and ask which command proves the change works.
- Day 4Let it open a pull requestOne small change, which you review and merge yourself.
- Day 5Write down what it got wrongAdd those lessons to your project rules file.
- Day 6Read what it didLook back over its changes and the commands it ran.
- Day 7DecideKeep it, change how you use it or stop. Then pick job two.