brainstorm

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).
version	0.3.1

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