Date: {{current_date_full_with_day}}
Hey {{first_name | AI enthusiast}},
Most people do not have an AI problem. They have a work-design problem.
They open ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or whichever tool they like that week. They ask a decent question. The answer looks useful. Then the real work begins: copying the answer somewhere else, fixing the format, checking the facts, rewriting the tone, sending it to a colleague, setting a reminder, and doing the same thing again next week.
That is why so many AI experiments feel impressive for ten minutes and then disappear.
This edition is practical. Below are five simple techniques you can copy, adapt, and use in your own business.
The five techniques:
The Workflow Gap Finder
The Finished-Job Brief
The One-Person Marketing System
The Plain-English Style File
The Infographic Planner
Each one solves a different problem. Together, they help you move from "AI gave me an answer" to "AI helped finish a useful piece of work."
Best regards,
The Workflow Gap Finder
Sparked by: James from The Boring Marketer, especially his issue "4 Vibe Marketing builds that turn AI potential into outcomes."
Best for: You know AI could help somewhere, but you do not know where to start.
The idea
The worst way to start with AI is to ask: "How can I use AI in my business?"
That question is too large. It invites vague answers. You will get a list that sounds reasonable but does not attach to any real work: write emails, summarize meetings, analyze data, create content, automate support, improve sales.
A better question is: "Where is this workflow leaking time, quality, or attention?"
A workflow is just a repeatable chain of work. Something comes in, a few things happen, someone decides something, and an output comes out.
For example:
A lead comes in, gets researched, gets qualified, and receives an email.
A call happens, notes are written, action items are assigned, and a follow-up is sent.
A customer question arrives, gets categorized, answered, and logged.
Every workflow has leaks. Someone waits too long. Someone copies data between tools. Someone rewrites the same kind of message for the twentieth time. Someone checks work manually because the first version is often wrong. Someone has the context in their head, and everyone else has to ask them.
Those leaks are where AI becomes useful.
When to use this
Use the Workflow Gap Finder when you know a task is annoying, slow, or inconsistent, but you do not yet know what to automate.
Good candidates:
Sales prospect research
Meeting follow-ups
Customer onboarding
Proposal drafts
Competitor tracking
Support ticket triage
Social post repurposing
Internal knowledge cleanup
Avoid using it on giant goals like "automate marketing" or "make operations efficient." Those are too broad. Pick one recurring task that a person can explain in three minutes.
Copy-paste prompt
Act as an AI operations consultant.
I will describe a recurring workflow in my business.
Your job is to find where the workflow leaks time, quality, or attention.
Do not give me a generic list of AI ideas.
First, ask me one question at a time until you understand:
- What starts the workflow
- What the final output should be
- Who is involved
- What information is needed
- Which tools are used
- Which steps are repeated
- Where delays happen
- Where mistakes happen
- Where human judgment matters
- How often the workflow repeats
After you understand the workflow, return:
1. A plain-English map of the workflow
2. The 5 biggest leaks
3. Which leaks AI can help with now
4. Which parts should stay human-led
5. The smallest useful AI workflow to test first
6. The input, steps, and output for that first test
7. The risks or failure points
8. A one-week test plan
Ask your first question now.
Use this in 20 minutes
Pick one task you repeated this week.
Write the messy version of how it works today.
Paste the Workflow Gap Finder prompt.
Answer the AI's questions.
Save the smallest workflow it recommends.
Do not build anything yet. Your only goal is to identify one real leak. In a few weeks, after you have used this prompt and improved it for your business context, you can ask you AI tool (Claude or ChatGPT) to convert it into a skill that you can reuse automatically.
The Finished-Job Brief
Sparked by: James from The Boring Marketer, especially his case study on putting AI to work behind the scenes of a local business doing $9k/day.
Best for: You want an AI agent, automation, or assistant, but the job still feels fuzzy.
The idea
The word "agent" has become almost useless. For a beginner, keep it simple: An agent has a job. That job needs a finish line.
If you tell AI, "Help me with sales," it has no real job.
If you tell AI, "Every Monday, review these 20 target accounts, find one recent trigger for each, draft a two-line opener, and flag any company with no useful trigger," you have a job.
Now the work has:
Inputs
Steps
Rules
An output
A way to check quality
That is the difference.
When to use this
Use the Finished-Job Brief before you build or ask for any AI agent, automation, or recurring assistant.
It works for:
Research briefs
Sales prep
CRM cleanup
Weekly reports
and so on…
If the task repeats and has a clear output, it deserves a brief.
Copy-paste template
# Finished-Job Brief
## 1. Job
What exact job should the AI do?
Example:
Prepare a weekly source brief from selected emails and links.
## 2. Trigger
When should the job start?
Examples:
- When I paste source links
- When a file is added to a folder
- Every Friday morning
- When a new lead appears in the CRM
## 3. Inputs
What information does the AI need?
Examples:
- Email body
- Transcript
- Spreadsheet
- Customer record
- Brand voice file
- Previous report
- Source links
## 4. Tools allowed
What is the AI allowed to use?
Examples:
- Browser
- Local files
- Spreadsheet
- Inbox
- CRM
- Calendar
## 5. Steps
What should happen in order?
Example:
1. Read the source material
2. Extract useful facts
3. Ignore promotional filler
4. Group related ideas
5. Draft a summary
6. Add source links
7. Flag uncertain claims
## 6. Definition of done
What must be true before the job is complete?
Example:
The AI has produced 5 newsletter ideas, each with a source, a reader takeaway, and a recommended angle.
## 7. Quality check
How should the AI check its own work?
Example:
Before finalizing, check:
- Is each claim supported by the source?
- Are source links included?
- Is the recommendation specific?
- Is anything too vague to use?
## 8. Stop conditions
When should the AI pause and ask for help?
Examples:
- Source material is missing
- The source contradicts itself
- A claim cannot be verified
- The job requires sending, publishing, deleting, or changing live data
- The topic involves legal, financial, medical, hiring, or other sensitive decisions
## 9. Human approval
What needs a person to approve?
Examples:
- Sending an email
- Publishing a post
- Updating a customer record
- Deleting or overwriting a file
- Making a public claim
## 10. Output format
What should the final answer look like?
Example:
Return a Markdown brief with:
- Title
- Summary
- Source links
- Recommended angle
- Draft intro
- Caveats
Use this in 20 minutes
Choose one repeated job.
Fill in only four fields: Job, Inputs, Definition of done, Human approval.
Paste the rough brief into AI.
Ask it to find what is vague or risky.
Rewrite the brief once before you use it.
If the brief still sounds broad, the job is not ready for an agent. This is the strongest candidate for a skill, after you are comfortable with its output for a week or so.
The One-Person Marketing System
Sparked by: James from The Boring Marketer, especially his issue "How to prepare your business for a one-person marketing team."
Best for: Your marketing work is scattered across tools, chats, folders, and memory.
The idea
A one-person marketing team is not one person doing ten jobs badly. It is one person supported by a system.
Without a system, the marketer becomes the place where every loose end lands. Write the newsletter. Fix the landing page. Check analytics. Make the LinkedIn post. Find the customer quote. Update the deck. Ask the founder for the positioning again.
AI does not solve that mess by itself. The system comes first.
What the system needs
At minimum, a one-person marketing system needs five things:
One place for the truth
Clear recurring workflows
Reusable prompts
Human approval rules
A simple way to measure what worked
This does not need to be fancy. A folder of Markdown files is enough. A Google Drive folder is enough. A Notion page is enough. The tool matters less than the discipline.
The point is that the marketer and the AI tool, (Claude or ChatGPT), should both know where the facts live.
Copy-paste checklist
# One-Person Marketing System
## A. Source of truth
Create one place for:
- What we sell
- Who we sell to
- The main customer pain points
- The offer
- Pricing and packaging
- Approved claims
- Case studies
- Testimonials
- Brand voice rules
- Product screenshots
- Competitor notes
- Past campaigns
- Newsletter archive
- Analytics links
- Content calendar
Rule:
If AI needs this context often, it belongs in the source of truth.
## B. Recurring workflows
List the marketing tasks that repeat.
Examples:
- Newsletter research
- Newsletter drafting
- LinkedIn repurposing
- Campaign reporting
- Competitor monitoring
- Customer story drafting
- Landing page updates
- Sales enablement updates
For each workflow, define:
- Input
- Owner
- Steps
- Output
- Review point
- Publishing destination
## C. Reusable prompts
Create prompt files for:
- Newsletter source review
- Newsletter draft
- LinkedIn post
- Customer story
- Landing page section
- Email subject lines
- SEO outline
- Campaign analysis
- Competitor comparison
Each prompt should include:
- Context
- Task
- Constraints
- Examples
- Output format
- Quality check
## D. Human approval rules
Human approval is required for:
- Strategy
- Pricing
- Legal or regulatory claims
- Customer promises
- Public claims
- Publishing
- Sending emails
- Anything sensitive
AI can prepare the work.
Humans still own the judgment.
## E. Weekly measurement
Track:
- What shipped
- How long it took
- What performed
- What got stuck
- What needed heavy editing
- What should be reused
- What should be killed
Starter file structure
If you want the simplest possible version, create a folder called marketing-system and add these files:
marketing-system/
offer.md
customer.md
brand-voice.md
approved-claims.md
weekly-workflows.md
prompts/
newsletter-source-review.md
linkedin-post.md
campaign-report.md
You can paste this into an AI tool and ask it to help fill the files one by one.
Use this in 20 minutes
Do not build the whole system today. Create only three files:
offer.md
customer.md
brand-voice.mdThen add five bullets to each file.
In offer.md, write what you sell, who it is for, and what problem it solves.
In customer.md, write who the reader or buyer is, what they care about, and what frustrates them.
In brand-voice.md, write how the content should sound and which phrases to avoid. That is enough to improve your next AI draft.
Copy-paste prompt
Act as a practical marketing operations editor.
Help me build a simple one-person marketing system.
Ask me one question at a time.
First, learn:
- What we sell
- Who buys it
- What marketing we do now
- Which tasks repeat every week
- Where work gets stuck
- What context already exists
- What must be approved by a human
Then create:
1. A source-of-truth checklist
2. A list of recurring marketing workflows
3. The first 3 prompt files we should create
4. A weekly rhythm for one person
5. A simple scorecard for what worked
Keep it simple enough for one person to run. Ask your first question now.The Plain-English Style File
Sparked by: Ruben Hassid, especially his issue "How to deslop Claude in 2 words."
Best for: AI keeps giving you writing that sounds polished, vague, and fake.
The idea
AI writing often has a smell. You can spot it quickly:
"In today's fast-paced digital landscape..."
"Unlock the power of..."
"This is not just X, it is Y."
"Dive into..."
"Game-changing."
"Seamless."
"Robust."
The model is not trying to annoy you. It is doing what it thinks polished writing sounds like. If you do not give it stronger rules, it reaches for safe, generic phrasing.
That is why you need a style file.
When to use this
Use a style file for:
Newsletter drafts
LinkedIn posts
Sales emails
Website copy
Reports
Proposals
Meeting summaries
Copy-paste style file
# Plain-English Style File
Use these rules for all drafts unless I give different instructions.
## Main rule
Write like a sharp human explaining something useful to a smart beginner.
## Sentence rules
- Use short sentences when possible.
- Use one idea per sentence.
- Use active voice.
- Prefer common words.
- Cut filler.
- Cut hype.
- Do not decorate weak ideas with big adjectives.
- If a sentence is hard to read, split it.
## Structure rules
- Start with the point.
- Explain why it matters.
- Give a concrete example.
- Give the reader a next step.
- Use bullets for steps.
- Use tables for comparisons.
- Use headings that say what the section is about.
## Avoid these phrases
- In today's fast-paced world
- Unlock the power of
- Dive into
- Game-changing
- Cutting-edge
- Seamless
- Robust
- Supercharge
- Streamline
- It is important to note
- Not just X, but Y
- Leverage, unless it is the clearest word
## Prefer this instead
- Say what changed.
- Say who it helps.
- Say what to do next.
- Use examples from real work.
- Show the before and after.
- Flag claims that need proof.
## Final editing pass
Before finalizing, check:
1. Could a smart beginner understand this?
2. Does it sound like a person wrote it?
3. Are there any vague claims?
4. Are there any unsupported claims?
5. Are there any stock AI phrases?
6. Is the next step clear?
After the rewrite, list:
- What you removed
- What you clarified
- Any claim that needs verification
Copy-paste rewrite prompt
Rewrite the text below using my Plain-English Style File.
Keep the useful detail.
Do not make it generic.
Do not make it sound like marketing copy.
Do not use stock AI phrases.
Add examples where the idea is abstract.
Flag claims that need a source.
Text:
[paste text]
Use this in 20 minutes
Take one AI-written draft you do not like.
Paste the Plain-English Style File above it.
Ask for a rewrite.
Then ask the model to identify the five most generic sentences left.
Save the final style file so you never have to repeat the same feedback.
The Infographic Planner
Sparked by: Ruben Hassid, especially his issue "Infographics."
The idea
Some ideas are easier to understand when they have a shape.
This matters because most people do not remember paragraphs. They remember the shape of the idea. It means a visual can help the reader understand the lesson faster.
Before you ask AI to "make an infographic," ask it to choose the right shape.
When to use this
Use the Infographic Planner when you have:
A framework
A checklist
A workflow
A comparison
A before-and-after idea
A set of steps
A complicated concept
If a reader would benefit from seeing the idea at a glance, make a visual plan.
Copy-paste prompt
Act as an editorial infographic planner.
I will give you an idea, article section, or rough framework.
Your job is to choose the clearest visual shape for the idea.
Do not design a busy graphic.
Do not add decoration.
Focus on making the idea easier to understand.
Return:
1. Core message
What is the one thing the reader should remember?
2. Best visual shape
Choose one:
- Checklist
- Timeline
- Ladder
- Funnel
- Flywheel
- 2x2 matrix
- Before and after
- Map
- Stack
- Scorecard
3. Why this shape fits
Explain why this structure makes the idea clearer.
4. Labels
Give the exact 5 to 8 labels that should appear on the graphic.
5. Headline
Write a short headline for the graphic.
6. Design notes
Suggest layout, colors, icons, and emphasis.
7. Image prompt
Write a prompt I can paste into an image or design tool.
8. No-image version
Give me a plain-text version that works if I do not create the graphic.
Here is the idea:
[paste idea]
Use this in 20 minutes
Pick one idea from a draft, call, or report.
Paste it below the Infographic Planner prompt.
Choose the visual shape it recommends.
Keep only 5 to 8 labels.
Turn those labels into a simple image, slide, or LinkedIn graphic.
If the image needs tiny text to work, the idea is not simple enough yet.
Quick guide to visual shapes
Use this when choosing a structure:
Checklist: steps the reader should follow
Timeline: something that happens over time
Ladder: levels of maturity or skill
Funnel: narrowing many options into one choice
Flywheel: a loop that compounds
2x2 matrix: tradeoffs or positioning
Before and after: transformation
Map: parts of a system
Stack: layers that build on each other
Scorecard: evaluation or grading
What to do this week
Do not try to build an AI operating system for your whole business.
Pick one repeated task. Then choose one tool:
If you do not know where AI fits, use the Workflow Gap Finder.
If you want an AI agent, write a Finished-Job Brief first.
If marketing feels scattered, build the One-Person Marketing System.
If AI writing sounds fake, save the Plain-English Style File.
If an idea feels hard to explain, use the Infographic Planner.
Pick the task you least want to do again next week. Run one tool from this issue on that task.
If you get a clearer workflow, a better brief, a reusable style file, or a simple visual plan, you have already won.
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