AI Operated
// Field notes on practical AI

AI that actually gets used in your business.

Trevor Davis’s field notes on practical AI: picking the right job, giving it your context, and getting your team to use it after the workshop ends.

For Entrepreneurs and their teams, online or in person: coaches and consultants, clinics and service businesses, real estate developers, course creators, and the programs that run workshops.

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Field notes on practical AI. Free, plain, no hype.

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12345The loopPICK TO TEACH, THEN AGAIN

Five steps. What worked tells you the next job.

// Sound familiar?

“We’re using AI.” Just not getting much from it.

The problem is rarely the tool. It’s a step that got skipped.

// In your business

What it looks like when it actually gets used.

Not AI everything. One job, grounded in how you already work, with a person checking what matters.

1 · Pick the job
Session recaps and follow-ups after every call.
2 · Ground it
Your frameworks, past recaps and the call notes, so it sounds like you and names their next step.
4 · Check it
You read every recap before it goes to a client.
What changes
Every client leaves with a recap in your words, and the notes stop piling up.

Illustrative examples, not client stories. Steps 3 and 5 (set it up where you work, teach the team) apply to every one.

// The loop

Five steps. Then round again.

Judgement before automation. Context, not tools. Most AI projects stall at the step nobody planned for.

12345The loop0 / 5 LOCKED IN
  1. 1 · Pick

    One job worth handing to AI.

    Not “AI everything”. The task that eats your week: the enquiry replies, the session notes, the Friday report.

  2. 2 · Ground

    Give it your context.

    Your voice, your past work, your rules. Generic in, generic out.

  3. 3 · Build

    Set it up where you already work.

    Your tools, not another app. If it lives in a new tab, it gets forgotten by Thursday.

  4. 4 · Check

    A person approves what matters.

    Automate what’s easy to undo. Check what isn’t.

  5. 5 · Teach

    Your team uses it without you.

    A short guide, a practice session, one owner.

  6. 6 · Round again

    Back to Pick: what worked tells you the next job.

    Most AI projects stall at the step nobody planned for.

One step at a time, in your inbox.

The field notes go deeper on each step, with real setups you can copy and the mistakes worth skipping.

// AI Operated Weekly

Field notes on practical AI. Free, plain, no hype.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

Illustrative example

Three AI tools, two paid subscriptions, one workshop. Six weeks later, nobody’s using any of it.

A made-up composite, not a client. The pattern is common enough that you might recognize it.

Six weeks later
  • 5 Hasn’t tried it
  • 7 Tried it once
  • 0 Uses it weekly
  • 0 Uses it daily

Illustrative team of 12. Not real data.

  • Stalled at Ground: No context

    The tools wrote like a brochure. People rewrote every draft, then stopped asking.

  • Stalled at Check: No check step

    One wrong reply went to a client. After that, nobody trusted it with anything that mattered.

  • Stalled at Teach: No owner

    The workshop was good. Then everyone went back to their week and nobody owned the follow-up.

// Step 2 · Ground

Generic in, generic out.

Same task, same tool. The only thing that changes is how much it knows about you. Add a layer and watch the reply change.

Made-up example. [BRACKETS] are placeholders.

  • Voice
    How you actually write
  • Past work
    What you’ve done before
  • Rules
    What you never do
  • Examples
    Replies you were proud of
Draft0/4 layers

Hello! Thank you so much for reaching out to us. We are thrilled to hear from you and would love to help you achieve your goals. Our comprehensive solutions are tailored to your unique needs. Please let us know a convenient time to connect!

Sounds like youNot at all
Made-up example. Same task, same tool, more context.
// Quick check

Where’s your AI stuck?

Five yes/no questions. The first “no” shows you the step to fix next.

Find your weakest step →
// Workshops

Hands-on, on your real work.

For teams, schools and programs. One session per step of the loop, built around the tasks your people already do.

How workshops work →

Sample sessions

  • SESSION 01

    Pick the job

    Map a normal week and choose the one task worth handing to AI.

    Format
    [FORMAT]
    Length
    [LENGTH]
    Price
    [PRICE]
    You leave with
    One job, written down, with an owner.
  • SESSION 02

    Build your context pack

    Voice, past work, rules and examples on one page. The gap between generic drafts and useful ones.

    Format
    [FORMAT]
    Length
    [LENGTH]
    Price
    [PRICE]
    You leave with
    A first context pack your team can edit.
  • SESSION 03

    Set it up where you work

    Put it inside the tools you already use, with a check step on anything hard to undo.

    Format
    [FORMAT]
    Length
    [LENGTH]
    Price
    [PRICE]
    You leave with
    One working setup, tried on real tasks.
  • SESSION 04

    Make it stick

    A short guide, a practice session and one owner, so it still gets used next month.

    Format
    [FORMAT]
    Length
    [LENGTH]
    Price
    [PRICE]
    You leave with
    A one-page guide and a named owner.

Want one of these for your team or program? Ask about a workshop

“Judgement before automation. Context, not tools.”

Trevor Davis writes the field notes and runs the workshops. They’re what he’s actually setting up with Entrepreneurs and their teams, written plainly. More about Trevor

Start with the field notes.

Practical AI for Entrepreneurs and their teams. What to pick, how to ground it, and how to make it stick.

// AI Operated Weekly

Field notes on practical AI. Free, plain, no hype.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

Running a team or a program? Ask about a workshop