brainstorming

name	brainstorming
description	Use when: explore options or decompose an ambiguous problem before committing to one approach.

Goal: widen the option space, then converge on a defensible direction.

Use for:

• vague or open-ended problems with no obvious approach
• choosing between competing designs or trade-offs
• breaking a large goal into independent sub-problems

Workflow:

1. Restate the problem and the real constraint behind it.
2. Generate several distinct approaches before judging any.
3. Decompose into sub-problems that can be solved independently.
4. For each option, name the key risk and what would falsify it.
5. Score against constraints, not preference.
6. Pick one, record why, and list what you deliberately rejected.

Techniques:

• invert the problem: what would guarantee failure
• find the smallest version that still has the hard part
• separate forced decisions from reversible ones

Rules:

• diverge before converging; do not anchor on the first idea
• keep options concrete enough to compare
• surface assumptions explicitly
• stop expanding once a clear winner survives the constraints