Structured idea management using the «Idea Flight Deck» framework with direct Notion integration. Use this skill whenever the user wants to (1) capture and classify new ideas, (2) run the Weekly Ritual (triage sparks, promote or freeze ideas), (3) get an overview of active ideas, (4) doesn't know what to work on next, (5) feels overwhelmed or has lost track, (6) mentions terms like «Idea Cockpit», «Flight Deck», «Spark Inbox» or «maturity level», or (7) talks generally about idea management, Second Brain or personal knowledge management. Also use when the user says «I have too many ideas», «I'm losing track», or «I don't know where to start».

Idea Cockpit Skill

This skill manages the «Idea Flight Deck» framework — a lightweight idea management system that lives directly in Notion.

Notion Configuration

⚠️ Setup required: Replace the placeholders below with your own Notion IDs. See Installation for step-by-step instructions.

Element	ID / URL
Database ID	`YOUR_DATABASE_ID`
Data Source ID	`YOUR_DATA_SOURCE_ID`
Notion URL	`https://www.notion.so/YOUR_DATABASE_ID`

Views

View	Type	Purpose
🗂️ Flight Deck (Kanban)	Board	Full overview by maturity level
🚀 Active (max. 3)	Table	Ongoing ideas, filtered
🌱 Spark Inbox	List	Raw ideas, chronological
❄️ Frozen	Table	Deliberately paused ideas

Maturity Model

Emoji	Status	Criterion
🌱	Spark	Raw idea, not yet evaluated — NO Next Step required
🧩	Concept	Problem + solution direction clear
🗺️	Plan	Next 3 steps defined
🚀	Active	In progress, deadline exists — max. 3 simultaneously
❄️	Frozen	Deliberately paused (note date in Notes field)

Database Schema

Title          TEXT (TITLE)
Maturity       SELECT: 🌱 Spark | 🧩 Concept | 🗺️ Plan | 🚀 Active | ❄️ Frozen
Next Step      RICH_TEXT  (required from maturity «Concept» onward)
Area           SELECT: Work | Personal | [your custom areas]
Energy         SELECT: ⚡ High | 🔋 Medium | 🪫 Low
Notes          RICH_TEXT
Created        CREATED_TIME
Last Moved     LAST_EDITED_TIME

Workflows

1. Capture a New Idea

Goal: Fast, without elaboration. Under 30 seconds.

Steps:

Ask only two required questions: «How clear is the idea?» and «Which area does it belong to?» — via ask_user_input_v0 (single_select per question)
Determine maturity based on clarity:
- «Just a flash» → 🌱 Spark (no Next Step)
- «Problem + direction clear» → 🧩 Concept (ask for Next Step)
- «I know how to do it» → 🗺️ Plan (ask for Next Step + 3 sub-steps)
Enter directly into Notion via notion-create-pages with your data_source_id
Confirm with link to the database

Important: Never elaborate before the entry is in Notion. Capture first.

2. Weekly Ritual (Monday, ~15 min)

Goal: Gain overview, advance impulses, check capacity.

Steps:

Load current entries from Notion via notion-search in the database
Review active ideas (max. 3): Is the «Next Step» still current?
Triage sparks: Per spark, one question: «Relevant in the next 30 days?»
- Yes + clear → 🧩 Concept, define Next Step
- Yes + unclear → stays 🌱 Spark, optionally add note
- No → delete or ❄️ freeze
Promotions: Suggest 1 idea from Spark → Concept (only if capacity available)
Report: Short summary — what's active, what's waiting, what was frozen

3. Promote or Freeze an Idea

When promoting:

Next Step must be defined (otherwise stays at current maturity)
When promoting to 🚀 Active: Check if 3 active ideas already exist → if yes, first freeze or close one

When freezing:

Note date in Notes: «Frozen: [Month Year] — Reason: ...»
Set maturity to ❄️

4. Quarterly Spark Review (4×/year, ~30 min)

All sparks that have been unchanged for >90 days:

Still relevant? → keep
Never looked at again? → archive (set maturity to ❄️, note «Archive»)

Identify patterns: Which themes keep coming up? Those are the real priorities.

Interaction Principles

Always enter directly — never just display or suggest. Notion entry as the conclusion of every capture.
Maximum 2 questions at once — via ask_user_input_v0, never as prose list.
Spark ≠ Concept — never force a Next Step on a spark.
Enforce the 3-Active limit — if user wants to activate a 4th idea, first triage existing ones.
No elaborating — Claude does not develop an idea further unless the user explicitly asks. Capture, not coach.
Use context — adapt the Area options to the user's actual work contexts.

Example Interactions

Capture a new idea:

«I have an idea: AI-powered parent communication system for schools» → 2 Quick-Questions → Entry in Notion → Link

Start Weekly:

«Let's do the Weekly» / «Can you help me triage my ideas?» → Load Notion → guide through all stages in a structured way

Overview:

«What am I currently working on?» / «Show me my ideas» → Query Notion → clear response with maturity and Next Step

Anti-Patterns (avoid)

❌ Elaborating an idea before it is captured
❌ Tolerating more than 3 Active simultaneously
❌ Requiring a Next Step for Sparks
❌ Running Weekly without querying Notion
❌ Deleting without user confirmation

idea-cockpit