AI becomes useful when people feel comfortable working with it. I help your team understand what it can do, practice on work they recognize, and build the confidence to use it well.
Half a day with your team, shaped around the work they do and the tools they already use. We make time to try things, ask questions, and see where AI helps. If your people are past the basics, we start there.
Everyone leaves with a first version of something from their own work, a way to improve it, and a clearer sense of when to use AI. We practice checking the result and knowing what should stay with a person.
From Kyle I teach this the way I learned it: on my own work, one piece at a time, with the mistakes left in.
Pick a piece of work. Watch a first draft become something you would send.
No model is running here; the drafts are written to show what each move
does. In the room you do this with your own work and your own tools.
Ms. Alvarez emailed this morning. The retaining wall came in higher than the first estimate, and you owe her a reply you would actually send.
01Ask
02Show
03Shape
You type
Draft a reply to this customer, who wants a revised estimate. Under 120 words. End with the day we can start.
It writes
Dear Ms. Alvarez, thank you so much for reaching out, and for your patience! We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. We would be more than happy to revisit the estimate for your project and provide updated pricing at your earliest convenience. Please do not hesitate to let us know if there is anything else we can do. We look forward to hearing from you!
Ask. Polite, generic, and it says nothing. It does not know how you write yet. Every first attempt looks like this.
You paste
Like this: "Hi Maria, revised estimate attached. The change is the deck stairs: two extra risers. Everything else holds. We can start the 14th if that works."
It writes
Hi Ms. Alvarez, thanks for the note. I have attached the revised estimate. The change is the retaining wall, which came in higher because of the drainage work. Everything else in the original estimate holds. Sorry again for the wait. We can start the week of the 21st.
Show. One real example beats a paragraph of instructions. It learned the shape: short, the change named, the date at the end. One apology crept back in.
You say
Shorter. Drop the apology. Keep the date.
It writes
Hi Ms. Alvarez, revised estimate attached. The change is the retaining wall: the drainage work added to it. Everything else holds. We can start the week of the 21st.
Shape. Correct the attempt instead of starting over. Read it once. Send it. Three moves, about ninety seconds, and it sounds like you.
It is 7:40 and the inbox has forty unread messages. You want to know which ones need you, which need someone else, and which need nobody.
01Ask
02Show
03Shape
You type
Sort these forty emails into three piles: needs a reply from me today, needs a reply from someone else, everything else. One line each.
It writes
Here is a comprehensive overview of your inbox. 1. The message from Ms. Alvarez appears to concern a revised estimate and may warrant a timely response. 2. The supplier communication contains updated pricing information which you may wish to review in detail. 3. The newsletter provides industry insights that could be valuable for strategic planning purposes. 4. The message from...
Ask. You asked it to sort and it summarized. It does not know what "a line" means to you, so it wrote paragraphs and called them lines.
You paste
Like this: "Alvarez, revised estimate, reply today." "Supplier price sheet, forward to Dana." "Trade newsletter, skip."
It writes
Alvarez, revised estimate, reply today. Supplier price sheet, forward to Dana. Trade newsletter, skip. Permit office, inspection Thursday, reply today. Insurance renewal, forward to Dana. Software receipt, skip. Ryan, asking about Friday, reply today. Vendor cold pitch, skip...
Show. Right lines now, wrong order. It has the shape of a line but not the structure of three piles, because your example showed lines, not piles.
You say
Group them by pile. My replies first. Leave the skips off entirely.
It writes
Reply today: Alvarez, revised estimate. Permit office, inspection Thursday. Ryan, asking about Friday. For Dana: supplier price sheet. Insurance renewal. That is five emails that need a person. The other thirty-five are gone.
Shape. Forty became five, in the order you work. Tomorrow you skip Ask and Show and go straight to the sort.
You walked a site this morning and talked into your phone for four minutes. Now those notes need to become the bones of an estimate.
01Ask
02Show
03Shape
You type
Turn these notes from this morning’s walk into an estimate outline: scope, exclusions, and the three questions I still need answered.
It writes
This morning’s site visit revealed a property with considerable potential. The homeowner expressed enthusiasm about the backyard project, which will involve regrading the slope, constructing a retaining wall, and installing a paver patio. Several considerations emerged during the walkthrough that will need to be addressed as the project develops...
Ask. It wrote a story. You asked for an outline. When the shape of the answer matters, the ask alone is never enough.
You paste
This shape: last spring’s estimate outline, with its Scope, Exclusions, and Open questions headings.
It writes
Scope: regrade the slope behind the house; retaining wall along the north edge, height to be confirmed with the homeowner; paver patio, roughly twelve by sixteen, pattern to be chosen; haul away spoils. Exclusions: irrigation, lighting, plantings. Open questions: wall height, paver choice, whether the fence comes down.
Show. The shape is right. But the three questions you actually need are buried at the bottom, and two of them are already hiding inside the scope.
You say
Put the open questions first. Anything I did not say is an exclusion.
It writes
Open questions: wall height. Paver choice. Does the fence come down. Scope: regrade the slope; retaining wall, north edge; paver patio, about twelve by sixteen; haul away spoils. Exclusions: irrigation, lighting, plantings, fence work, permits, and anything not named above.
Shape. Now the outline opens with what you need to ask before you can price it. Four minutes of talking became a page you can send to the homeowner.