Day 1

Have Your First Real Conversation

15 minutes

Before you can use AI as a tool, you need to feel what it's like to talk to one.

1. Pick a tool and create a free account:
   • Claude - my personal favorite. Best at writing, reasoning, and following detailed instructions
   • ChatGPT - the most popular, widest set of features
   • Gemini - Google's AI, great if you're already in the Google ecosystem
2. Copy and paste this prompt exactly (replace the bracketed parts with your info):

3. Read the response. Then reply with this follow-up:

This is a conversation, not a search engine. Push back, ask questions, and tell it when something isn't useful.

Day 2

Give AI a Real Work Task

20 minutes

This is where AI goes from interesting to useful.

Pick one task on your plate right now and hand it to AI. The key is giving enough context. Here's the difference:

See the difference? The good prompt gives AI four things: who it's for, what happened, the tone, and a constraint. More context = better output.

Pick one and try it now (replace the bracketed parts with your real info):

You'll almost always need to edit the result. But starting from a solid draft instead of a blank page saves real time.

Day 3

Find Your Repetitive Tasks

15 minutes

You can't automate what you haven't identified.

Open a note and write down 3 tasks you do every week that feel repetitive. For each one, note:

1. What the task involves (the steps you take)
2. How long it takes you
3. What the finished output looks like

Not sure what counts? Use this prompt to help you find them:

Keep your list of 3 tasks. You'll use it tomorrow.

Day 4

Build a Reusable Prompt

25 minutes

A prompt template turns a one-time experiment into something you use every week.

Pick one task from yesterday's list. Write a prompt using this framework:

Example: Turning weekly status updates into a reusable prompt:

1. Paste the prompt into your AI and test it with real notes
2. Tweak the prompt until the output is close to what you'd actually send
3. Save the final prompt somewhere you'll find it next week (a note, a doc, a pinned message)

You just built your first AI workflow.

Day 5

Connect AI to Your Tools

20 minutes

AI goes from something you copy-paste into to something that works inside your real workflow.

Today you'll connect AI to the apps you already use so it can pull real data without you copying anything over.

If you're using Claude:

1. Go to Settings > Integrations
2. Connect the tools you use: Google Drive, Gmail, Google Calendar, Slack, or Notion
3. Try this prompt to test it:

If you're using ChatGPT:

1. Go to Settings > Connected Apps
2. Link your Google account, OneDrive, or Slack
3. Try uploading a file directly in the chat and asking questions about it

If you're using Gemini:

1. Gemini connects to your Google Workspace automatically if you're signed in
2. Try: "Summarize my most recent emails" or "What's on my calendar tomorrow?"

These connections are sometimes called "integrations" or "MCP connectors" depending on the platform. Same idea: letting AI talk directly to the apps you already use.

Day 6

Build a Claude Skill

20 minutes

A Skill turns your best prompt into a permanent tool that Claude can run anytime without you re-explaining what you need.

A Claude Skill is a saved set of instructions that teaches Claude how to do a specific task your way. Instead of pasting the same prompt every week, you build the Skill once and it's always there. Today you'll take the prompt template you built on Day 4 and turn it into a proper Skill.

Step 1: Grab your prompt template from Day 4

Pull up the reusable prompt you saved. You already did the hard part. Now you're going to have Claude package it into a Skill for you.

Step 2: Ask Claude to turn it into a Skill

Open Claude and paste this:

Claude will generate a complete, properly structured Skill file for you.

Step 3: Save it to your Skill library

When Claude generates the Skill, it will give you the option to save it directly to your Skill library within Claude. Once saved, the Skill is always available in your account. You can also download the Skill file to your computer if you want a backup or to share it with someone else.

Step 4: Test it

1. Start a new chat in Claude
2. Your Skill will automatically activate when you give it a relevant task
3. Try it with real input from your work

Step 5: Refine over time

Your first version probably won't be perfect. That's expected. You can edit your Skill anytime from your Skill library in Claude. As you use it, you'll notice things you want to tweak: maybe the tone isn't quite right, or you want it to include an extra section. Update the instructions, save, and your Skill gets better every time.

Skill ideas to get you started:

• Weekly status update writer
• Meeting notes summarizer
• Email drafter with your preferred tone
• Client proposal outliner
• Content idea brainstormer for your industry

Day 7

Automate and Meet Your First Agent

30 minutes

This is where you go from using AI yourself to having AI do work for you.

Two concepts to try today. They're different, and both are worth knowing. Pick one to start with. If you have time, do both.

Option A: Automation

Automation follows rules you set up: "when X happens, do Y." It runs in the background without you.

1. Go to zapier.com and create a free account
2. Create a new Zap. Pick a trigger (e.g., new email, new form response)
3. Add an AI step that processes it (e.g., summarize the email, draft a reply, extract key info)
4. Start with one of the repetitive tasks from your Day 3 list

Option B: Agents

Agents are different. Instead of following rules, you give an agent a goal and it figures out the steps on its own. Here's where to try them:

• Claude Dispatch: Go to claude.ai/dispatch and give it a multi-step task. Try this:

• ChatGPT Agent Mode: Start a new chat, click the model picker, and select "Agent" (or use "Deep Research" for research tasks). Then try this:

The difference: Automation is a conveyor belt (reliable, same steps every time). Agents are more like a real assistant (flexible, can figure things out on their own). You'll eventually want both in your toolkit.