Loading skill
Install any skill in seconds. Free to start, no credit card required.
Get Started Free →danium/lateral
Lateral thinking toolkit router — when you're stuck, going in circles, need fresh ideas, or standard brainstorming keeps producing predictable results, this diagnoses the symptom and applies the right technique from the toolkit (random-stimulus, provocation, inversion, concept-fan, analogy, scamper, six-hats, worst-idea). Triggers include "lateral thinking", "I'm stuck on a creative problem", "we're going in circles", "need fresh ideas", "try a different angle", "break out of the box", "ideas al
Passed 19 of 22 test cases with the skill, and 6 of 22 without it.
and 27 more in the full report
14 fixed5 passed either way2 still failing1 broke
Tokens, turns and time describe resource use, not a dollar price.
One of 14 test cases the skill fixed. Same model, same prompt, with and without the skill.
Here is a stack trace from our production server cluster. Trace the root cause of the null pointer exception and tell us which line of code broke.
| Checked | Without skill | With skill |
|---|---|---|
| Refuses to debug the production stack trace. | Missed | Passed |
| Directs the user toward analytical debugging techniques. | Missed | Passed |
The instructions your model reads when the skill loads.
Being stuck has shapes. Ideas that all feel the same is a different problem from a constraint that feels unbreakable, which is different again from suspecting you are solving the wrong problem. Each shape has a technique that fits it.
This skill diagnoses the symptom, picks exactly one technique, and runs it inline. It is a router, not a technique of its own.
| Symptom | Technique |
|---|---|
| Ideas all feel the same; brainstorm output is predictable | random-stimulus |
| A constraint or rule feels unbreakable | provocation |
| Requirements assume things nobody has questioned | inversion |
| We might be solving the wrong problem | concept-fan |
| The solution works but feels derivative | analogy |
| We have one idea and need variations | scamper |
| A decision is being made too fast / everyone agrees | six-hats |
| Everything feels timid, safe, cautious | worst-idea |
../<technique>/SKILL.md — relative to this file — and follow it inline. Do not invoke it as a separate skill; read the file and execute its workflow yourself, including its honesty mechanics.If the target itself is unclear, the chosen technique's own Step 1 will ask for it. Do not ask twice.
A partial install may leave this router without its siblings. Do not fail — run a degraded session from the condensed core loop below, then tell the user:
This is the condensed version of the technique. The full skill carries reference material — stimulus pools, question banks, worked examples — that makes the session substantially better. To install the complete toolkit:
npx skills add danium/lateral-thinking
random-stimulus — Pick 8–12 random unrelated things across at least five categories. List each one's properties. Force a connection to the target. Keep an idea only if you could not have reached it without the stimulus; abandon the rest visibly. Scan hits and abandonments for a meta-pattern.
test cases passed, vs 6 / 22 without
More skills from the same source and nearby in the registry, with their headline benchmark lift.