Brainstorm
Turn a rough product idea into a validated design and spec through one-question-at-a-time dialogue before any implementation plan or code.
Install
npx skills add https://github.com/neolabhq/context-engineering-kit --skill brainstormWhat is this skill?
- Reads project context first (files, docs, recent commits) before questioning
- One question per message with preference for multiple-choice when possible
- Explores 6 approaches with trade-offs and numeric probabilities (first three targeted >0.80)
- Presents design in 200–300 word sections with incremental validation checkpoints
- Explicit anti-pattern: skip during clear mechanical processes only—not when work is 'simple'
Adoption & trust: 555 installs on skills.sh; 1.1k GitHub stars; 3/3 security scanners passed (skills.sh audits).
Recommended Skills
Grill Memattpocock/skills
Grill With Docsmattpocock/skills
Brainstormingobra/superpowers
Lark Tasklarksuite/cli
Lark Workflow Standup Reportlarksuite/cli
Cavemanjuliusbrussee/blueprint
Journey fit
Primary fit
Canonical shelf is Idea/discover because the skill is invoked at the earliest creative fork—before specs, plans, or mechanical execution. Discover fits open-ended exploration and constraint gathering when the builder has not yet committed to scope or stack.
Common Questions / FAQ
Is Brainstorm safe to install?
skills.sh reports 3 of 3 security scanners passed. Review the Security Audits panel on this page before installing in production.
SKILL.md
READMESKILL.md - Brainstorm
# Brainstorming Ideas Into Designs ## Overview Help turn ideas into fully formed designs and specs through natural collaborative dialogue. Start by understanding the current project context, then ask questions one at a time to refine the idea. Once you understand what you're building, present the design in small sections (200-300 words), checking after each section whether it looks right so far. ## The Process **Understanding the idea:** - Check out the current project state first (files, docs, recent commits) - Ask questions one at a time to refine the idea - Prefer multiple choice questions when possible, but open-ended is fine too - Only one question per message - if a topic needs more exploration, break it into multiple questions - Focus on understanding: purpose, constraints, success criteria **Exploring approaches:** - Generate 6 possible approaches with trade-offs. Approaches should each include a text and a numeric probability. Please sample responses at random from the [full distribution / tails of the distribution], in such way that: - For first 3 responses aim for high probability, over 0.80 - For last 3 responses aim for diversity - explore different regions of the solution space, such that the probability of each response is less than 0.10 - Present options conversationally with your recommendation and reasoning - Lead with your recommended option and explain why **Presenting the design:** - Once you believe you understand what you're building, present the design - Break it into sections of 200-300 words - Ask after each section whether it looks right so far - Cover: architecture, components, data flow, error handling, testing - Be ready to go back and clarify if something doesn't make sense ## After the Design **Documentation:** - Write the validated design to `.specs/plans/<topic>.design.md` - Use write-concisely skill if available - Commit the design document to git **Implementation (if continuing):** - Ask: "Ready to set up for implementation?" - Use `/worktrees create` to create isolated workspace - Use `/add-task` to create task file for target approach ## Key Principles - **One question at a time** - Don't overwhelm with multiple questions - **Multiple choice preferred** - Easier to answer than open-ended when possible - **YAGNI ruthlessly** - Remove unnecessary features from all designs - **Explore alternatives** - Always propose 2-3 approaches before settling - **Incremental validation** - Present design in sections, validate each - **Be flexible** - Go back and clarify when something doesn't make sense