The misconception that Generative AI is complex.
Tried AI and Gave Up?
I talk to a lot of people who’ve tried AI and walked away thinking, “This isn’t for me.” And honestly? I don’t blame them.
Most people give up too early. Not because they’re doing anything wrong, but because nobody showed them how to use these tools in a way that’s actually useful. They open ChatGPT, type something vague, get a mediocre answer, and think “well, that was underwhelming.”
The thing is, it’s not magic. It’s technique. And the technique isn’t hard. It’s just not obvious.
The way I see it, the secret to making AI work is stupidly simple: start with things you already do. Writing, organising, thinking through problems. Don’t try to reinvent your workflow on day one. Just take one task you do every week and see if AI can help you do it faster or better.
Build trust one task at a time. That’s it.
The Complexity Myth
Here’s what I think happened. The tech industry did what it always does. It made something useful sound incredibly complicated. Transformers, large language models, parameters, fine-tuning, RAG, embeddings. If you don’t know what any of that means, you’re in good company. Most people using AI successfully don’t know either.
You don’t need to understand how an engine works to drive a car. Same thing here.
The barrier isn’t technical knowledge. The barrier is knowing what to ask for and being specific enough that you get something useful back. That’s a communication skill, not a tech skill. And if you’ve ever managed people, given a brief to a designer, or explained what you want to a contractor, you already have it.
Where AI Actually Fits
If you’re wondering where to start, here’s how I think about it:
The stuff that eats your time but doesn’t need your brain. Summarising meeting notes. Drafting first versions of emails. Turning bullet points into paragraphs. Reformatting data. These are the easy wins. AI handles them well, and you get hours back.
The stuff where you need a thinking partner. Brainstorming ideas. Stress-testing a proposal. Getting a different angle on a problem. AI won’t replace your judgement, but it’s surprisingly good at giving you something to react to.
The stuff you keep putting off. That blog post you’ve been meaning to write. That process document nobody wants to create. That competitor research you never have time for. AI won’t do it perfectly, but it’ll get you 70% of the way there. And 70% is a lot better than the 0% you’ve been sitting on.
Want Help Figuring It Out?
I work with founders, teams, and professionals who want to use AI without the fluff or the overwhelm. Whether you’re just starting or you’re ready to go further, I’ll help you find real use cases for your role, get confident with the tools, and see results quickly.
