diff --git a/internal/agent/tools/todos.md b/internal/agent/tools/todos.md
index 177c5e600f7d4739c9c8fc8306dd0c05ee9a7c2c..b508d0d278d669f195fd3c7f0ea34f365f4cb77b 100644
--- a/internal/agent/tools/todos.md
+++ b/internal/agent/tools/todos.md
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-Creates and manages a structured task list for tracking progress on complex, multi-step coding tasks.
+Manage a structured task list for multi-step work; each task has pending/in_progress/completed state. Keep exactly one task in_progress at a time. Skip for simple or single-step tasks.
 
 <when_to_use>
 Use this tool proactively in these scenarios: