# Plan Creative Work Before Building

Teams often start implementation before goals, constraints, and trade-offs are clear. This skill guides Claude, Codex, and Claude Code through structured brainstorming before design work begins.

## Install

```bash
npx skillstore add zhanlincui/brainstorming
```

## Metadata

- Status: approved
- Slug: zhanlincui-brainstorming
- Skillstore revision: r1
- Version status: missing
- Tree hash: 4f83f0d27313f12cbc986fba78e5eb6e9a4aca7d354f1108c02cd40db2d71770
- Author: ZhanlinCui
- GitHub username: ZhanlinCui
- License: MIT
- Repository: https://github.com/ZhanlinCui/Ultimate-Agent-Skills-Collection/tree/main/brainstorming
- Ref: 64ca8af0f54a325752f08bd54e52151061ea659a
- Supported tools: Claude, Codex, Claude Code
- Audit status: complete
- Agent install advisory: allowed
- Manual install advisory: allowed
- Artifact signature: available
- Audit attestation: unavailable
- Human verification: not\_verified
- Risk factors: external\_commands
- Quality score: 79
- Quality tier: bronze
- Public page: https://skillstore.pages.dev/skills/zhanlincui-brainstorming
- Manifest: https://skillstore.pages.dev/api/skills/zhanlincui-brainstorming/manifest

## Capabilities

- Reviews current project context before shaping a new idea.
- Asks one focused question at a time to refine requirements.
- Compares two or three approaches with trade-offs and a recommendation.
- Presents design sections in small reviewable chunks.
- Covers architecture, components, data flow, errors, and testing.
- Directs the assistant to document the validated design plan.

## Use Cases

- Shape a New Feature: Clarify purpose, constraints, and success criteria before choosing an implementation path.
- Compare Technical Approaches: Evaluate several possible designs and select a recommended direction with clear trade-offs.
- Prepare a Design Document: Turn a validated idea into a structured design covering architecture, data flow, errors, and tests.

## Prompt Templates

### Clarify an Idea

```
Use the brainstorming skill to help clarify this idea: [describe the idea]. Ask one question at a time before proposing designs.
```

### Plan a Feature

```
Use the brainstorming skill to plan a feature for [project]. Start by reviewing context, then identify requirements, constraints, and success criteria.
```

### Compare Options

```
Use the brainstorming skill to compare two or three approaches for [goal]. Recommend one option and explain the trade-offs clearly.
```

### Create a Design Spec

```
Use the brainstorming skill to turn this validated concept into a design spec. Cover architecture, components, data flow, errors, and testing.
```

## Limitations

- It does not replace product strategy or user research.
- It depends on the user to validate each design section.
- It may need repository access to inspect project context.
- It is not an implementation skill by itself.

## Best Practices

- Provide project goals, constraints, and known risks before starting.
- Answer each clarification question before asking for the next design section.
- Validate the recommendation before requesting a written design plan.

## Anti Patterns

- Skipping questions and asking for immediate implementation.
- Using the skill when requirements are already fully specified.
- Accepting every proposed feature without checking scope or value.

## Security Audit

- Audited at: 2026-07-08T12:22:03.346\+00:00
- Summary: The only static finding is a false positive caused by Markdown inline code around a file path. No prompt injection, data exfiltration intent, or malicious behavior was found in SKILL.md.

## Stats

- Views: 158
- Downloads: 194
- Favorites: 4
- Popularity score: 0