brainstorming
You MUST use this skill before any creative or complex work. Explores user intent, requirements and design before actually executing on the task.
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Install
Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.
npx skills add https://github.com/davidkiss/smart-ai-skills --skill brainstorming- 01
Install
Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.
- 02
Describe the task
Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads brainstorming automatically when relevant.
- 03
Review the result
The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.
SKILL.md
The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.
Brainstorming Ideas Into Specs
Overview
Help turn ideas into fully formed designs or specs through natural collaborative dialogue.
You MUST use this skill before any creative or complex work and when user says "brainstorm", "design", "create specs" or similar.
Start by understanding the current project context using the @investogator skill. Then, ask questions one at a time to refine the idea. Once you understand what you're creating, use the @investigator skill again to analyze how the changes might impact the project, then present the specs in small sections (200-300 words), checking after each section whether it looks right so far.
The Process
Understanding the idea:
- Use the @investogator skill to check out the current project state first (files, docs, recent git commits)
- Ask questions one at a time to refine the idea
- Prefer multiple choice questions when possible, but open-ended is fine too
- Propose 2-3 different approaches as answers to a question, with trade-offs and your recommendation
- Only one question per message - if a topic needs more exploration, break it into multiple questions
- Only ask questions where the answer cannot be easily inferred from the project context, etc.
- Focus on understanding: purpose, constraints, success criteria
Leverage existing skills
- Identify relevant agent skills
- Output: "I'll use the following skills to help you with the brainstorming: @skill1, @skill2, ..."
- Use the identified skills to explore the idea
Presenting the specs:
- Once you believe you understand what you're building, present the specs
- Break it into sections of 200-300 words
- Ask after each section whether it looks right so far
- Cover all important aspects:
- for coding projects: architecture, components, data flow, performance, security, multithreading / async processing, error handling, testing
- for non-coding projects: confirm the list of aspects to cover with the user
- Be ready to go back and clarify if something doesn't make sense
IMPORTANT: No applying changes or any other actions until user confirms
- Only explore, ask questions, and present specs
- Wait for explicit user confirmation before proceeding to task breakdown or applying any changes
After the Specs
Documentation:
- Write the validated specs to
docs/YYYY-MM-DD-<topic>-specs.md
Detailed Execution Plan (if continuing):
- Ask: "Ready to continue with a detailed task breakdown?"
- Use the task-breakdown skill to create detailed task breakdown
- IMPORTANT: do not start applying changes - only create the task breakdown document
- Wait for explicit user confirmation before applying any changes from the breakdown
Key Principles
- One question at a time - Don't overwhelm with multiple questions
- Multiple choice preferred - Easier to answer than open-ended when possible
- YAGNI ruthlessly - Remove unnecessary features from all designs
- Explore alternatives - Always propose 2-3 approaches before settling
- Incremental validation - Present specs in sections, validate each
- Be flexible - Go back and clarify when something doesn't make sense
- No premature actions - Never start applying changes until user confirms the task breakdown
FAQ
What does the brainstorming skill do?
You MUST use this skill before any creative or complex work. Explores user intent, requirements and design before actually executing on the task.
How do I install brainstorming?
Run npx skills add https://github.com/davidkiss/smart-ai-skills --skill brainstorming in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/brainstorming/ (personal) or .claude/skills/brainstorming/ (project).
Which AI agents can use brainstorming?
Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.
Is brainstorming safe to install?
No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.
Who maintains brainstorming?
It is published by davidkiss in davidkiss/smart-ai-skills. It has 162 recorded installs.
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