The workflow that killed vibe coding for me

Hey builders,

I stopped vibe coding.

Not because it didn't work. Because it worked too fast and broke too much.

Let me explain.

The trap

Most people give vague prompts like "build a landing page" and Cursor goes wild.

Things move fast. But most of the time goes into cleanup:

• Messy logic

• Hallucinated features

• Bugs nobody asked for

You're not building. You're babysitting.

The root problem

When you give a high-level goal, the Cursor agent starts guessing.

Structure. State. Styles. Logic.

You end up with bloated, hard-to-maintain code.

Fast now. Painful later.

The mindset shift

I stopped prompting like a user.

I started directing like a product engineer.

It's no longer "can you build this?"

It's "here's what to build, exactly how I want it."

Cursor became my dev. I became the architect.

The calm coder workflow

This is what I follow every single time:

1. Plan → Write a clear 1-page PRD with ChatGPT

2. Break down → Use Cursor's Plan Mode to list exact tasks

3. Execute → Feed one task at a time to Cursor

4. Review → Use CodeRabbit to check quality

Clean. Repeatable. Fast.

Step 1: The 1-page PRD

Do not jump into Cursor yet.

Start with a simple PRD that explains what you're building and why.

Cover:

• What problem you're solving

• Core features, prioritized

• Tech stack

• User flow

This becomes your source of truth.

Step 2: Cursor Plan Mode (the game changer)

Press Shift + Tab to enter Plan Mode.

Here's what happens:

• Cursor reads your codebase

• Asks clarifying questions

• Drafts an editable Markdown plan

• Generates Mermaid diagrams for flows

• Lists exact to-dos with file paths

You review. You tweak. Then you execute.

Why this changed everything for me

Before, I used external tools like TaskMaster.

Now it's all native inside Cursor.

• It's codebase aware

• Builds visual diagrams automatically

• Plans are saved to disk and can be committed to Git

• You can dispatch tasks to multiple agents using worktrees

Step 3: One task at a time

Once the plan is ready, don't dump everything into Cursor.

Take one task. Run it. Check the output. Review it.

Only then move to the next one.

This keeps the agent focused and your code clean.

Step 4: Let CodeRabbit review everything

Once a feature is done, use CodeRabbit's Fix with AI to review the changes.

This is your first layer of security and quality checks.

For layer two, open a PR and chat with the CodeRabbit agent.

It goes deeper and helps you make sure only solid, secure code gets merged.

CodeRabbit:

• Spots hidden bugs

• Suggests cleaner implementations

• Flags edge cases

• Gives you a senior-level review instantly

Do not skip this step.

Before vs after

Before:

• Big vague prompts

• Messy output

• Hours debugging

• Burnout

After:

• Small tasks from Plan Mode

• Clean output

• AI reviews

• Stress-free shipping

The difference is night and day.

My full stack for AI-assisted shipping

• ChatGPT → Planning and PRD

• Cursor Plan Mode → Task breakdown

• Cursor Agent → Execution

• CodeRabbit → Review

This is how I ship MVPs fast without skipping quality.

Keep building,
~ Prajwal

PS: If you're tired of the chaos and want the full system to build with AI, that's exactly what we break down inside AI MVP Builders. I have also started restructuring the entire build module for 2026 to make this the only place you need. Lock in now before the price goes up.