by How brainstorming improved the way I work with Claude Code, and why you should try it
The solo-dev project challenge
Every developer has had a project idea, that famous "what if it works?", which received 1 or 2 initial commits and was then archived due to a lack of time or clear definitions.
As this idea takes shape, challenges begin to emerge, whether technical (like ‘which technology to use?’ or ‘how to implement this?’) or product-related (like ‘what are the next features?’).
All these questions, and many others, naturally arise during the development of any project. Just like in daily life, things come up, and we have to deal with them.
In the corporate environment, where we are usually part of the Engineering and Development team (software engineers, developers, etc.), we are responsible for resolving technical issues. We possess the necessary knowledge to deal with them, either through prior experience (acquired knowledge) or through research (ability to seek information).
In contrast, the Product team (product owners, product managers, etc.) has the knowledge to answer product questions.
But what about a solo project? In this scenario, you only have part of the knowledge. How, then, do you answer with confidence?
Today, I open the terminal, start Claude Code, and use the skill brainstorming from the Superpowers plugin.
And it’s game-changing.
Planning a Feature (me and Claude)
LLMs produce quality code. This is already a fact in 2026, and our work today consists more of directing development and reviewing changes.
However, their development planning approach resembles that of an inexperienced developer: few questions about implementation/structure and a focus on delivering a plan they can execute.
This works when there is a well-defined functionality, and changes and improvements largely depend on my ability to direct the agent. It asks a few questions and focuses on delivery.
This changes completely when you only have a general idea of what you want to do. The agent tries to solve it directly, even with a prompt that, from a human perspective, is incomplete.
LLMs are not deterministic, so sometimes the agent asks a few questions when given a broad prompt. However, there are few, and the process is not consistent.
Brainstorming completely changes this experience: Claude starts thinking with me about how to improve the project.
Brainstorming – a new (at least for Claude) way to plan
Brainstorming is one of the skills in the Superpowers plugin, and it runs before starting code implementation. Its function is to understand the project, discuss the new feature, and question details until a design document is reached, which will be used in the implementation of the selected feature.
The flow consists of 6 steps:
- Explore the existing context
- Ask related questions
- Propose 2-3 approaches
- Present design for approval
- Write the design documentation
- Transition to the implementation plan
After understanding the existing context, it initiates a round of questions about what is desired to be implemented, with pre-generated options and the possibility to discuss each question.
After these questions, it summarizes what it understood about the new feature, with the specifications defined during the session.
It provides 2 to 3 implementation options, recommending one:
Finally, it reviews the implementation plan for the chosen option, step by step, and requests confirmations. It also displays the task planning,
and validates that step, with room for changes.
All this to, finally, generate the design document from that brainstorming session and proceed to the elaboration of the implementation document.
In this document, it determines the implementation steps, the code that will be edited or implemented, the tests to be generated, commands – everything related to the development of the discussed feature.
A brainstorming, design, and planning session – all discussed with the AI.
AI in the world of development
The development market is changing. The evolution of code agents allows developers to increasingly focus on product aspects.
Architecture decisions, planning, scoping, task generation: activities that were once reserved for the product team are now part of developers’ daily lives. Good programming practices have become even more necessary. The programmer makes decisions and coordinates a team of one or more code agents.
A tool that helps you think, like brainstorming, also brings LLM resources to the product side – research speed, documentation knowledge, and planning power. Skills that make our lives easier.
However, LLMs still cannot replace the main human factor in the development of any product: creativity. The machine copies, cites, and researches, but does not possess original thought. It still needs human direction, both in product planning and in supervising technical execution.
What I learned
I have always enjoyed prototyping, but I consistently struggled with the challenge of researching/planning/executing/refactoring the project while balancing it with the rest of my professional life.
Brainstorming changed the Claude Code experience for me: I’m not a product genius, I have the general ideas, but not the final details – those came out by talking to the robot (an updated version of the famous rubber duck?). The design document is great for reviewing ideas, and the implementation document is wonderful for reviewing the implementation.
In the end, it’s still my idea, and my product. Just done as a duo.
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