What's in the book
Ten chapters across three parts. Each chapter ends with a hands-on exercise you can try in any AI tool. Each one draws on a real project, not a hypothetical example.
Part 1 · Chapters 1–3
How to think about AI
After these three chapters, you'll know how to have a genuinely useful conversation with AI and how to tell when you can trust what it gives you.
Chapter 1: You're talking to a person, not a machine
See what happens when you describe your actual situation instead of typing a vague question.
Chapter 2: Start with your problem, not with AI
The worst way to start with AI is to look for something to use it on. This chapter shows why starting with a real problem — not a test question — changes everything.
Chapter 3: Trust, but verify
AI is confidently wrong often enough that you need a system for catching it. This chapter teaches you how to spot errors, force AI to doubt itself, and know when to check.
Part 2 · Chapters 4–7
Working patterns
After this part, you'll know how to get genuinely useful output from AI — not by learning special techniques, but by communicating clearly, pushing back, and using the right tool for the job.
Chapter 4: Be specific, be honest, be demanding
One honest conversation produces a better brief than any prompt template.
Chapter 5: Think in drafts, not in answers
The first draft is a starting point. The real value comes from the argument that follows.
Chapter 6: Let them fight
One AI critiques another's work. The disagreement catches what neither would find alone.
Chapter 7: Different tools for different jobs
Not all AI tools are the same — and an expensive mistake taught me why it matters which one you reach for.
Part 3 · Chapters 8–10
Building
From using AI to building with it. Three chapters on turning occasional use into a reliable working practice.
Chapter 8: Build things you couldn't build before
Take a recurring problem and build a working first version of something that solves it.
Chapter 9: Learn anything, faster
Start an ongoing coaching relationship with AI about something you've been meaning to improve.
Chapter 10: The only real limit
Pick one real problem and have the conversation you've been putting off.
Ready to start?
Paperback releases 6 August 2026 (£14.99). Kindle available now for pre-order (£6.99).