brainstorm

name	brainstorm
description	Divergent idea generation — many candidate ideas across several frames with judgment deferred, then a clustered shortlist. Use to open a solution space wide, or /brainstorm. Not for developing one idea (ideate) or picking one (propose).

brainstorm

The divergence skill. Given a problem or opportunity, it generates a wide set of candidate ideas across several framings — with judgment deliberately deferred so quantity comes first — then clusters them and surfaces a shortlist worth developing. It opens the space; it does not close it. Deciding among the candidates is propose; developing one into a shaped concept is ideate.

It is read-only and advisory: it writes an IDEAS.md (candidates + clusters + a shortlist with a one-line why), never product code. The output is judged by Review — is the space genuinely wide (multiple distinct frames, not variations on one), and is the shortlist reasoned?

What this does / does not do

Does: restate the problem + any constraints; generate many candidates across distinct frames (e.g. remove the problem, borrow from another domain, invert the constraint, brute-force, minimal); defer judgment during generation; cluster near-duplicates; surface a shortlist with a one-line rationale each; write IDEAS.md + a receipt. Does not: converge to a single recommendation (that is propose), develop one idea in depth (that is ideate), build a proof-of-concept (that is prototype), or write product code.

When NOT to use

• The direction is already chosen and needs developing into a concept — use ideate.
• A decision among known options is needed — use propose (tradeoffs + a pick).
• The unknown is feasibility and needs a throwaway build to answer — use prototype.
• The task is execution, not ideation — go to the pipeline (specify → decompose → executor).

Inputs

• The problem / opportunity statement + any hard constraints (budget, time, platform, non-goals).
• Optional context: state/project-map.md, the intake/spec if one exists.

How to do it

1. Frame the problem. Restate it in one line + list the hard constraints; a wide space still respects the non-negotiables.
2. Diverge across frames. Generate candidates from several distinct angles — deferring judgment. Aim for breadth (many frames), not ten variants of one idea.
3. Defer judgment. During generation, do not filter for feasibility — a bad-looking idea often seeds a good one. Capture everything.
4. Cluster. Group near-duplicates; name each cluster by its underlying approach.
5. Shortlist. Surface the few candidates worth developing, each with a one-line why and the frame it came from. Note what was deliberately parked.
6. Write IDEAS.md — candidates (by cluster) + the shortlist + parked ideas.

Output

• IDEAS.md at the product root (or ideas/IDEAS.md if that dir exists) — persistence: Ephemeral. Problem + constraints · candidates grouped by cluster/frame · shortlist (with a one-line why + frame) · parked ideas.
• receipt (<workspace>/receipts/brainstorm-receipt-<ts>.json): base schema + topic, frames_used, candidate_count, cluster_count, shortlist, ideas_path. persistence: Ephemeral.

Completion Criteria

Done when: IDEAS.md holds candidates generated across several distinct frames with judgment deferred, clustered, with a reasoned shortlist and the parked set noted; a receipt records the frames + counts.

Not done if: the "ideas" are variations on a single frame (no real divergence); generation was filtered for feasibility as it went (premature convergence); or it converged to one recommendation (that is propose, not brainstorm).

Next step: ideate develops a shortlisted idea into a concept; propose decides among the shortlist; prototype de-risks the chosen one.

Related Skills

• ideate: develops ONE direction in depth. brainstorm produces breadth; ideate produces depth on a pick from it.
• propose: converges to a single recommended approach with tradeoffs. brainstorm feeds it options.
• prototype: plans a throwaway build to answer a feasibility unknown a shortlisted idea raises.