brief-to-tasks

Included with Lifetime

$97 forever

Break a design brief into an ordered checklist of independently buildable tasks using vertical slices. Saves as a markdown checklist. Use when user wants to break down work, create tasks from a brief, plan implementation order, or mentions "tasks" or "breakdown".

Design

What this skill does


This skill turns a design brief into an ordered, buildable task list. Each task is a vertical slice: a piece of UI that can be built, reviewed, and verified on its own.

## Example prompts

- "Break the brief into tasks"
- "What should I build first?"
- "Create a task list from the design brief"
- "Plan the build order for this feature"

## Process

1. Read the design brief. Look for `.design/*/DESIGN_BRIEF.md`. If multiple subfolders exist, use the most recently modified one, or ask the user which feature they are working on. Also check for `INFORMATION_ARCHITECTURE.md` and a tokens file in the same subfolder. If none exist, ask the user to describe what they are building.

2. Explore the existing codebase to understand what is already built. Scan specifically for:
   - **Component directories**: `components/`, `ui/`, `shared/` and list every component by name
   - **Existing pages/views**: what is already built that this feature must coexist with
   - **Token/theme files**: `tokens.css`, `globals.css`, Tailwind config, theme providers
   - **File naming conventions**: kebab-case, PascalCase, how files are organized (by feature, by type)
   - **Test files**: if tests exist alongside components, new tasks should include test expectations
   - **Package.json dependencies**: what UI libraries, animation libraries, and icon sets are already installed
   - Classify each relevant component as: will be reused as-is, needs modification, or does not exist yet. Only components that need modification or creation get their own tasks.

3. Break the work into vertical slices. Each task should:
   - Be independently buildable (no task should block another unless noted).
   - Include structure, styling, and interaction in a single task (not "build HTML" then "add CSS" then "add JS" as separate tasks).
   - Be verifiable: you can look at the result and confirm it matches the brief.
   - Be small enough to complete in a single session.

4. Order tasks by:
   - **Dependencies first**: foundational elements (tokens, layout shells, shared components) before page-specific work.
   - **Visual priority**: the most prominent UI element early, so the user can validate the aesthetic direction before investing in details.
   - **Risk first**: the hardest or most uncertain piece early, so problems surface before everything else is built around them.

5. Save the task list as `TASKS.md` in the same `.design/<feature-slug>/` subfolder as the design brief.

## Task List Template

```markdown
# Build Tasks: [Feature/Page Name]

Generated from: .design/<feature-slug>/DESIGN_BRIEF.md
Date: [date]

## Foundation
- [ ] **[Task name]**: [One sentence describing what to build and what "done" looks like]. _Reuses: [existing components/tokens if any]._
- [ ] **[Task name]**: [Description]. _New component._

## Core UI
- [ ] **[Task name]**: [Description]. _Depends on: [task name if any]._
- [ ] **[Task name]**: [Description].

## Interactions & States
- [ ] **[Task name]**: [Description]. Covers: [list of states, e.g., hover, loading, error, empty].
- [ ] **[Task name]**: [Description].

## Responsive & Polish
- [ ] **[Task name]**: [Description]. Breakpoints: [which ones].
- [ ] **[Task name]**: Accessibility pass. [Specific checks from the brief].

## Review
- [ ] **Design review**: Run /design-review against the brief.
```

## Rules

- Every task must reference whether it reuses, modifies, or creates components.
- Never create a task that is only "set up the project" or "create the file structure." Those are not vertical slices.
- If the brief specifies an aesthetic philosophy, note it in the first build task so the visual direction is established immediately.
- Group related tasks but do not nest them more than one level deep. Flat lists are easier to work through.

Files: 1

Size: 4.0 KB

Complexity: 8/100

Category: Design

Source: https://github.com/julianoczkowski/designer-skills/tree/main/brief-to-tasks

Related in Design

contribute

Included

Local-only OSS contribution command center. Auto-refreshes the user's in-flight PR and issue state on invoke so conversations start with full context — no need to brief Claude on what's in flight. Helps the user find issues to contribute to on GitHub, builds per-repo dossiers of what each upstream expects (CLA, DCO, branch convention, AI policy, draft-first, review bots, issue templates), runs deterministic gates before any external action so AI-assisted contributions don't reach maintainers as slop. State is markdown-only: candidate files at ~/.contribute-system/candidates/, repo dossiers at ~/.contribute-system/research/, append-only event log at ~/.contribute-system/log.jsonl. No database, no cloud calls. Use when the user asks about their PRs / issues / contributions, wants to find new work to take on, claim an issue, build/refresh a repo's dossier, or draft a Design Issue or PR. Trigger with "/contribute", "what's my PR status", "find a contribution", "claim issue X", "draft a Design Issue for Y", "refresh dossier for Z".

Designscripts

architectural-analysis

Included

User-triggered deep architectural analysis of a codebase or scoped subtree across eight modes — information architecture, data flow, integration points, UI surfaces, interaction patterns, data model, control flow, and failure modes. This skill should be used when the user asks to "diagram this codebase," "map the architecture," "show the data flow," "give me an ERD," "trace control flow," "find the integration points," "verify the layout pattern," "audit the UX architecture," or any similar request whose primary deliverable is mermaid diagrams plus cited reports under docs/architecture/. Dispatches haiku/sonnet sub-agents in parallel for per-mode exploration, then verifies every citation mechanically before any node lands in a diagram. Not for one-off prose explanations of code (use code-explanation) or for high-level system design from scratch (use system-design).

Designscripts

mcp

Included

Model Context Protocol (MCP) server development and tool management. Languages: Python, TypeScript. Capabilities: build MCP servers, integrate external APIs, discover/execute MCP tools, manage multi-server configs, design agent-centric tools. Actions: create, build, integrate, discover, execute, configure MCP servers/tools. Keywords: MCP, Model Context Protocol, MCP server, MCP tool, stdio transport, SSE transport, tool discovery, resource provider, prompt template, external API integration, Gemini CLI MCP, Claude MCP, agent tools, tool execution, server config. Use when: building MCP servers, integrating external APIs as MCP tools, discovering available MCP tools, executing MCP capabilities, configuring multi-server setups, designing tools for AI agents.

Designscripts

react-native-skia

Included

Design, build, debug, and optimise high-polish animated graphics in React Native or Expo using @shopify/react-native-skia, Reanimated, and Gesture Handler. Use when the user wants canvas-driven UI, shaders, paths, rich text, image filters, sprite fields, Skottie, video frames, snapshots, web CanvasKit setup, or performance tuning for custom motion-heavy elements such as loaders, hero art, cards, charts, progress indicators, particle systems, or gesture-driven surfaces. Also use when the user asks for fluid, glow, glass, blob, parallax, 60fps/120fps, or GPU-friendly animated effects in React Native, even if they do not explicitly say "Skia". Do not use for ordinary form/layout work with standard views.

Designscripts

plaid

Included

Product Led AI Development — guides founders from idea to launched product. Six capabilities: Idea (discover a product idea), Validate (pressure-test the idea against fatal flaws, problem reality, competition, and 2-week MVP feasibility), Plan (vision intake + document generation), Design (translate image references into a design.md spec), Launch (go-to-market strategy), and Build (roadmap execution). Use when someone says "PLAID", "plaid idea", "help me find an idea", "product idea", "idea from my business", "idea from my expertise", "plaid validate", "validate my idea", "pressure-test", "is this idea good", "find fatal flaws", "validate the problem", "plan a product", "define my vision", "generate a PRD", "product strategy", "plaid design", "design from image", "translate image to design", "create design.md", "extract design tokens", "plaid launch", "go-to-market", "launch plan", "GTM strategy", "launch playbook", "plaid build", "build the app", "start building", or "execute the roadmap".

Designscripts

nextjs-framer-motion-animations

Included

Adds production-safe Motion for React or Framer Motion animations to Next.js apps, including reveal, hover and tap micro-interactions, whileInView, stagger, AnimatePresence, layout and layoutId transitions, reorder, scroll-linked UI, and lightweight route-content transitions. Use when the user asks to add, refactor, or debug Motion or Framer Motion in App Router or Pages Router codebases, especially around server/client boundaries, reduced motion, LazyMotion, bundle size, hydration, or route transitions. Avoid for GSAP-style timelines, WebGL or 3D scenes, heavy scroll storytelling, or CSS-only effects unless Motion is explicitly requested.

Designscripts