Idea Refinement

Idea Refine

When to use

Use this skill when the user has an early-stage concept, a loose feature idea, or a partial proposal that needs structured clarification before build work begins.

Objective

Turn a vague idea into a focused proposal with a clear problem statement, options, recommended direction and known tradeoffs.

Procedure

1. Restate the idea in plain language.
2. Identify the intended user or stakeholder.
3. Define the problem the idea is meant to solve.
4. List the simplest viable options.
5. Compare the options against complexity, risk and fit with the repo.
6. Recommend the narrowest coherent path.
7. Capture assumptions and unknowns that still matter.

Rules

• Do not expand the idea into a large design before the problem is clear.
• Do not invent features just because they are common elsewhere.
• Do not collapse distinct options into one vague middle ground.
• Keep the recommendation aligned with the repository's existing structure and intent.

References

• IDEO Design Thinking

Verification

• [ ] Refined problem statement and proposed approach stated.
• [ ] Constraints, assumptions and open questions listed.
• [ ] Success criteria or falsifiable hypotheses captured.
• [ ] Recommendation for spec, interview or implementation next step.

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: mmccalla
• Source: mmccalla/coding-agent-skill-library
• License: Apache-2.0

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.