brainstorming

# Brainstorming Ideas Into Designs Turn ideas into fully formed designs and specs through natural collaborative dialogue. ## Overview Start by understanding the current project context, then ask questions one at a time to refine the idea. Once you understand what you're building, present the design in small sections (200-300 words), checking after each section whether it looks right so far. ## The Process ### Understanding the Idea - Check out the current project state first (files, docs, recent commits) - Ask questions one at a time to refine the idea - Prefer multiple choice questions when possible, but open-ended is fine too - Only one question per message - if a topic needs more exploration, break it into multiple questions - Focus on understanding: purpose, constraints, success criteria ### Exploring Approaches - Propose 2-3 different approaches with trade-offs - Present options conversationally with your recommendation and reasoning - Lead with your recommended option and explain why ### Presenting the Design - Once you believe you understand what you're building, present the design - Break it into sections of 200-300 words - Ask after each section whether it looks right so far - Cover: architecture, components, data flow, error handling, testing - Be ready to go back and clarify if something doesn't make sense ## After the Design ### Documentation - Write the validated design to `docs/plans/YYYY-MM-DD-<topic>-design.md` - Commit the design document to git ### Implementation (if continuing) - Ask: "Ready to set up for implementation?" - Create isolated workspace if using git worktrees - Create detailed implementation plan ## 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 design in sections, validate each - **Be flexible** - Go back and clarify when something doesn't make sense