---
title: "Best Practices"
description: "Each step should do one thing well. Don't combine fetch + clean + analyze in one step. Add validation steps to catch data quality issues early. Network dependent steps should use retry: Set budgets for workflow agents to"
resource: https://www.aiagents.nexus/docs/manual/workflows/best-practices
generated: { by: "process:nexus-agent-assets", at: 2026-09-07T09:13:03Z }
status: stable
---

# Workflow Best Practices

## 1. Keep Steps Focused

Each step should do one thing well. Don't combine fetch + clean + analyze in one step.

## 2. Validate Data Between Steps

Add validation steps to catch data quality issues early.

## 3. Use Retry for Flaky Steps

Network-dependent steps should use retry:

```yaml
steps:
  - name: fetch-api
    onError: retry
    retries: 3
    retryDelay: 10
```

## 4. Monitor Execution Times

```bash
naos workflow status --all
```

## 5. Combine with Cost Controls

Set budgets for workflow agents to prevent runaway costs during long pipelines.