| name | brainstorm |
| description | Preserves the structured divergent-thinking stance consumed by the explore workflow: option generation before judgment, trade-off analysis, and spark capture. Not a primary entry point — route "explore this", "help me think through options", or similar user entry intent to pitch; explore owns the agent-facing inquiry lifecycle that consumes this technique. Not for problem discovery as a ceremony (use pitch) or bounding a chosen direction (use shape). |
Brainstorm
Generative thinking — expanding possibilities before narrowing. This stance is an internal technique consumed by explore, which owns inquiry continuity through Explorations and portable checkpoints; invoke the technique from there rather than as a standalone workflow.
Critical Rules
Always
- Diverge before converging — generate options before judging
- Connect exploration to VISION.md and STRATEGY.md context
- Document discarded options — they hold valuable reasoning
- Log invocation first:
loaf journal log "skill(brainstorm): <topic>"
- Capture sparks (speculative byproducts) with
loaf spark capture --scope <scope> --text <text>; brainstorm summaries may render or summarize them
- Set boundaries on exploration time
- Log outcome to the project journal:
loaf journal log "decision(scope): direction chosen and rationale"
Never
- Prematurely commit to an option before full exploration
- Create documents, reports, or any Git artifact from this technique — the surrounding Explore workflow owns checkpoints and any durable writes
- Process sparks during the divergent pass — capture only, expand later
- Turn the divergence into an interview — keep it exploratory
Verification
After a divergent pass, verify:
- Sparks captured with
loaf spark capture as they arose
- The surrounding Exploration checkpointed the conclusions, discarded options, and open question (
loaf exploration checkpoint)
- The divergence referenced strategic context from VISION/STRATEGY
Quick Reference
Mode Detection
| Input Pattern | Mode | Output |
|---|
| Idea file reference | Idea Processing | Deep dive on captured idea |
| Problem/question | Problem Exploration | Exploratory options |
| Empty | Open Brainstorm | "What should we think about?" |
Spark Format
## Sparks
- **Title** -- one-line description
- **Title** -- one-line description
Sparks are lightweight byproducts worth remembering; their dispositions belong to triage. SQLite spark state is the source; any summary inside a checkpoint item is narrative, not lifecycle.
Suggests Next
After a divergent pass, checkpoint the surrounding Exploration (loaf exploration checkpoint), then suggest shape if a clear direction emerged or triage to disposition captured sparks and ideas.
Topics
| Topic | Reference | Use When |
|---|
| Strategic Context | strategy/references/ | Grounding exploration in project direction |
