“You need to get better with AI”

Feeling that pain?

Who isn’t? We’re all being told that AI is the future. The key to success. An essential skill we must master…before it takes our job!

But here’s the conundrum:

How do you find the time to get better with AI when you can barely find the time to breathe?

If you are like most AI users, you poke around. Use AI when you have to. Paste in a rough request and pray it spits something usable.

The result? AI-slop.

Low-quality content. Generic ideas. Wasted time.

The irony? Most people blame the tool—but the real issue is how they use it.

Let’s fix that.

THE SECRET: AI mastery isn’t about time – it’s about systems

You don’t need to be an AI whisperer.

You need a handful of smart habits that turn AI into your assistant, strategist, editor, and research analyst.

Here are 15 shortcuts you can steal, starting today, to skip the learning curve and start getting results.

1. Turn AI into your question partner

Stop guessing what to type. Start with this: "Ask me 5 questions so you can help me do this better."

You’ll spend less time fumbling and more time focused.

2. Use meta-prompts

Don't reinvent the wheel every time. Create reusable prompt templates:

"Act as my recruiter marketing coach. Here’s my email draft. Help me make it more persuasive, more personal, and under 100 words."

Copy. Paste. Tweak. Done.

FYI: The email you are reading was created with two meta-prompts…one for brainstorming and a second for writing!

3. Build an AI board of advisors

Why brainstorm alone? Set up personas of people you admire. People you would love to have as a personal mentor. For example, here are the personas, I call on to help with marketing:

• Dan Kennedy GPT for direct response
• Seth Godin GPT for strategy
  
• Alex Hormozi GPT for offer creation
• Marcus Sheridan GPT for lead conversion

Then ask: "What would each of you say? Where do you disagree?"

Boom. Instant advisory board!

4. Create context packs

Spend 10 minutes making a doc that explains your:

• Company
• Services
• Clients
• Tone
• Goals

Upload it at the start of a chat session—or load it into a project. AI will respond like it actually knows you.

5. Repurpose to learn

When you get a killer output, don’t just use it—save it.

"Blog-to-LinkedIn converter" "Outreach email polisher" "Candidate pitch enhancer"

Create your own swipe file of prompts that work.

6. Use one-minute experiments

Instead of sitting down to "learn AI," run fast tests:

• Ask the same question five different ways
• Try summarizing a resume in your voice
• Rewrite a post in under 100 words

Real learning happens in motion. And if you’re not sure how to run these experiments, ask AI to guide you through the process! Be sure to tell the AI that you want high-quality output and not generic content or ideas.

7. Automate repetitive inputs

Use simple GPTs to:

• Turn meeting notes into follow-ups
• Review sales call transcripts and show you how to improve
• Create job ad drafts from intake forms

Each GPT can save 5–10 minutes — dozens of times a week.

8. Edit AI like a pro

Don’t settle for "meh." After each output, ask: "What’s missing? Where did this go off track?"

Then say: "Revise using your own critique."

It learns. You win.

ADVANCED TIP: Ask the AI to create a scoring rubric for the content you are trying to create. Then tell the AI to create multiple variations of the desired content, and not to show you the results until it has created something that beats an acceptable minimum score.

9. Use deep context

Before you prompt, drop in a few paragraphs:

• Past client emails
• Brand tone guides
• Market data

The more context you provide, the better the output.

10. Timebox your AI sessions

Set a timer.

"10 minutes to brainstorm a campaign. Go."

Urgency fuels focus.

11. Steal great prompts

Follow people like Ethan Mollick, Dan Shipper, and Allie K. Miller.

Steal their best prompts. Tweak them. Use them.

Prompt-writing is the new copywriting.

12. Build a buddy system

Pair up with a teammate. Each week, share one AI trick that worked.

15 minutes = 2x smarter.

13. Schedule "AI slots"

Don’t try to "find time." Put 10-minute slots on your calendar:

• Monday: Prospect research
• Wednesday: Social posts
• Friday: Process automation

Repetition builds skill. Consistent skill building leads to mastery.

14. Use your voice

Typing can slow you down. Use voice prompts via mobile or desktop mic.

More natural = more useful.

15. Treat AI as an apprentice, not a magic trick

Stop expecting perfection. Start using this loop:

AI draft → Human feedback → AI polish

That beats 90% of what's out there.

The Takeaway

You don’t need to learn AI.

You need to integrate it.

The staffing professionals who win aren’t spending more time on AI. They’re designing better workflows around it.

And those workflows are getting them better:

• Content
• Outreach
• Strategy
• Hiring
• Sales

So…are you going to keep winging it?

Or are you ready to build a smarter system?

Shoot me a note if you try any of these shortcuts. Or better yet, share your best one. Let’s up our AI game together!