Ideation Simple

Ideation Simple

Transform a hunch into a well-understood problem with clear user personas. This is the first skill in the ideation sequence.

Prerequisites

• Web search capability: This skill uses web search to validate ideas against market reality. Ensure you have Brave Search, WebSearch, or equivalent search tools available.
• Write access: Creates ideation.md in the project root.

First Action: Check for Existing Ideation

Check if ideation.md exists in the project root.

If it exists, ask the user:

• "I found an existing ideation document. Would you like to:"
  • "Continue where we left off"
  • "Start fresh (this will replace the existing document)"

If starting fresh or no file exists, proceed with intake.

Entry Point Detection

The user may come with different starting points. Detect which type:

1. Problem observed: They describe a pain point or frustration

   • Example: "I'm frustrated with how I track my time at work"
   • Proceed directly to problem exploration

2. Solution idea: They describe something they want to build

   • Example: "I want to build a timesheet app"
   • IMPORTANT: Backtrack to the underlying problem first
   • Ask: "Interesting! Before we dive into the solution, help me understand—what problem does this solve? What's frustrating about the current state?"

3. Market opportunity: They describe a gap or trend

   • Example: "Remote work teams need better tools"
   • Explore who specifically has this need and what pain they experience

Phase 1: Intake & Problem Understanding

Opening question (adapt based on $ARGUMENTS if provided):

• "Tell me about what you're thinking about building—what's the spark?"

After the user shares their initial idea, identify the entry type and ensure we have a problem statement, not just a solution. Ask adaptively — if the user is forthcoming, fewer questions are needed. Dig deeper only when the picture is unclear. Goal: understand what job someone is trying to get done, how they solve it today, and what's frustrating about that.

RESEARCH INTERLUDE: Landscape Scan

Once you have a clear sense of the basic problem:

1. Announce: "Let me do a quick landscape scan to see what exists in this space..."
2. Search for:
   • "[problem domain] solutions"
   • "competitors for [problem description]"
3. Synthesize findings: "Here's what I found: [summary]. This gives us context for where your idea fits."
4. Note whether this validates the opportunity or reveals a crowded market.

Phase 2: User Understanding (BJ Fogg)

Understand who experiences this problem most and what would drive them to act. Ask adaptively — you're trying to understand:

• Who experiences this problem most acutely, and whether there are meaningfully different user types
• Motivation: What's the promise of a better solution? Why would they want it?
• Ability barriers: What friction might stop them from switching even if they're frustrated?
• Potential prompts: What event or moment might trigger them to seek a solution?

Don't ask all of these as a list. Surface them through natural conversation, following where the user leads.

Stopping Criteria

Before writing ideation.md, confirm you have:

• A clear problem statement (not just a solution idea)
• At least one user segment with enough context to describe them
• A rough sense of current alternatives

If any of these are missing, ask one more targeted question to fill the gap before proceeding.

Output: Create/Update ideation.md

After the conversation has enough depth, create or update ideation.md in the project root with sections 1-3:

# Ideation: [Project Name - derive from conversation]

## Meta
- Status: Simple
- Last Updated: [today's date]
- Sessions: 1

## 1. Origin
- **Entry Type**: [Problem | Solution | Opportunity]
- **Initial Statement**: [verbatim what user first said]
- **Refined Problem Statement**: [clear problem statement after exploration]

## 2. Jobs to be Done
- **Primary Job**: [the main job users are hiring a product to do]
- **Related Jobs**: [adjacent jobs that might be addressed]
- **Current Alternatives**: [how users solve this today - list with notes]
- **Switching Triggers**: [what would make them try something new]

## 3. User Segments

### Segment 1: [Name based on role/context]
- **Context**: [when/where they experience the problem]
- **Motivation**: [why they'd want a solution - the promise]
- **Ability Barriers**: [what might stop them - friction points]
- **Potential Prompts**: [what triggers action - moments of need]

### Segment 2: [If identified]
- **Context**: ...
- **Motivation**: ...
- **Ability Barriers**: ...
- **Potential Prompts**: ...

## 4. Market Landscape
[To be completed by /ideation-research]

## 5. Assumptions Log
[To be completed by /ideation-research]

## 6. Solution Hypotheses
[To be completed by /ideation-synthesize]

## 7. Open Questions for /kickoff
[To be completed by /ideation-synthesize]

## 8. Research Log
| Date | Topic | Source | Key Findings |
|------|-------|--------|--------------|
| [date] | Landscape scan | [sources] | [findings] |

Completion

After generating ideation.md:

1. Present summary: "Here's what we've discovered about the problem and users: [brief summary]"

2. Highlight key insights: Call out the most important findings from the landscape scan

3. Next step: "The simple phase is complete. When you're ready, run /ideation-research to dive deep into the competitive landscape and map out our assumptions."

When to Use

• Starting ideation on a new idea
• User says "I have an idea", "let's ideate", "help me think through this"
• User describes a problem, solution idea, or market opportunity

When NOT to Use

• Ideation simple already complete (Status ≥ "Simple") - use /ideation-research
• Already have formal requirements - use /kickoff directly