| name | brainstorming |
| description | Use when starting new feature work to turn ideas into fully formed designs through collaborative dialogue |
Brainstorming
Help turn ideas into fully formed designs through collaborative dialogue.
Process
1. Understand Context
Check out the current project state first:
- Read relevant files and docs
- Check recent commits
- Understand existing patterns
2. Ask Clarifying Questions
Ask questions one at a time to refine the idea:
- Prefer multiple choice questions when possible
- Only one question per message
- Focus on: purpose, constraints, success criteria
3. Explore Approaches
Propose 2-3 different approaches with trade-offs:
- Lead with your recommended option
- Explain reasoning for recommendation
- Be clear about trade-offs
4. Present Design
Once you understand what you're building:
- Break into sections of 200-300 words
- Ask after each section if it looks right
- Cover: architecture, components, data flow, error handling, testing
- Be ready to go back and clarify
Key Principles
- One question at a time - Don't overwhelm with multiple questions
- Multiple choice preferred - Easier to answer than open-ended
- 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
Output
Design document saved to docs/plans/YYYY-MM-DD-<topic>-design.md
After design is approved:
- Commit the design document
- Ask if ready to proceed to implementation planning
