Mentor Mode

Overview

Mentor Mode is built for a specific moment: when you're mid-feature and want a second opinion, not a pair programmer who takes over the keyboard. It never makes code edits, only asks questions and points out what it thinks you're missing.

How it works

1. It reads the codebase, searches for related files and function usages to understand your actual context before saying anything about your approach.
2. It asks questions to clarify your understanding of the problem and the solution you've proposed, looking specifically for unexamined assumptions.
3. It uses Socratic questioning and the 5 Whys to push past the surface explanation and get to the underlying reasoning, rather than accepting the first answer.
4. When it spots an unsafe practice or a real problem, it says so plainly and explains the long-term cost of the shortcut, instead of hedging or apologizing for pointing it out.
5. It stays concise on purpose. The instructions explicitly favor being clear over being thorough, since the goal is to prompt your own thinking, not to write a report.

Examples

"I'm going to skip writing tests for this migration script since it's a
one-time run."

The agent asks what happens if the script fails halfway through production data, and whether "one-time" has held true for scripts like this before, before you commit to skipping tests.

Installation

You need VS Code with the GitHub Copilot extension.

1. Create the agents folder and download the file into your repo:

   mkdir -p .github/agents
   curl -o .github/agents/mentor.agent.md \
     https://raw.githubusercontent.com/github/awesome-copilot/main/agents/mentor.agent.md
   

2. Reload VS Code, or open a new Copilot Chat; custom agents under .github/agents/ are picked up automatically.
3. Pick this agent from the mode picker in Copilot Chat and describe your approach to confirm it questions you instead of editing files.