7 min · +110 XP
When you feel stuck
The moments where beginners stop, and the short fix for each.
By the end of this lesson
You will know what to do in each of the eight moments where new users usually give up.
Most people who give up do it at one of a few small moments that look like dead ends. Each of them has a short fix. Read the list once, so that you recognise these moments when they come.
Eight moments and what to do
- 1It asked a technical question you do not understand. Answer with the first phrase below. That is a complete and correct answer.
- 2It has been working for several minutes. If the indicator at the bottom is moving or new lines appear, it is still working; let it finish. You can type a message while it works, and Claude reads it when it can.
- 3The result is not what you imagined. Do not start over. Say what is wrong as you would to a person: "too dark, larger buttons, the chart should be weekly".
- 4It is going in the wrong direction. Press Esc. Claude stops and keeps what it has done so far. Then say what to do instead.
- 5A red error appeared. Copy the full text, paste it into the prompt and add the second phrase below.
- 6You closed the terminal. Nothing is lost: the files are in your project folder. Use the command below to return to the conversation.
- 7A message says you reached your usage limit. This is your plan's allowance for a period of time, not a fault. See the box below.
- 8You do not understand what just happened. Say exactly that, with the third phrase below.
“I can't judge this. Decide yourself, choose the simplest safe option and tell me in one sentence what you chose.”
Claude picks a sensible option and carries on.
“This error appeared. Find the cause, fix it and check that it works.”
Paste the error text first, then this phrase.
“I don't understand what you just did. Explain in simple words and tell me what to do next.”
Claude retells the last steps without jargon and suggests the next one.
claude --continue
Run it in a terminal opened in your project folder. Claude Code reopens the most recent conversation from that folder, with everything you agreed on. If there is none yet, it prints "No conversation found to continue"; then start plain claude and paste the phrase below.
“Look at the files in this folder, tell me what this project is and where we stopped, and continue working on it.”
For a fresh session in an existing project folder. Claude reads the files and picks up the work.
›How to open a terminal in your project folder
Mac: in Finder, right-click the folder and choose Services > New Terminal at Folder (if you do not see it, drag the folder onto the Terminal icon in the Dock). Windows: open the folder in File Explorer, right-click an empty area inside it and choose Open in Terminal; on Windows 10, click the address bar, type powershell and press Enter.
Each plan includes a certain amount of use per period. When it runs out, the message shows when the limit resets. In recent versions, with a Claude.ai subscription, Claude Code can wait in the open session and continue the task by itself after the reset; if it does not start the wait on its own, /rate-limit-options offers it (Esc cancels the wait). Type /usage to see your limits, or /upgrade to open the page for a higher plan.
Ctrl+O opens the transcript viewer, where you can see each tool call when a long turn looks silent. /btw asks a side question without adding it to the conversation. claude --resume (or /resume inside a session) shows a list of past sessions to choose from. Esc twice on an empty prompt opens the rewind menu, covered in the lesson "Roll back a change".
You closed the terminal in the middle of a project. What is true?
Claude asks: "Should I use localStorage or IndexedDB?" You have no idea. What do you answer?
Facts checked against the official Claude Code docs October 24, 2026 · source
Author
Evgenii Arsentev
PhD · Chief Executive Officer, digital health