Stay ahead of the curve by turning AI from something you read about into something you use.
In today’s Ahead with AI:
Prompt: your evolution in life as seen through GPT
Prompt: gather market signals to guide your next business move
Prompt: reframe conflict before reacting
How to: create videos with Google Vids
How to: turn text into visuals with Napkin AI
Key insight: separate exploration from execution to avoid endless editing cycles
3 prompts to kick off your week
There are endless ways to use AI, but many of them slip by because we never think to ask. Here are three to try this week with your favorite model. Add your own context so the answers are useful.
These are ready to go, but if you want prompts tailored to your own needs, try my Prompt Generator. Premium readers get 150 bonus credits.
I. For you: Your evolution in life as seen through GPT
Based on everything you know about me from our entire chat history and memory, map out how I’ve evolved over the years in different areas of my life. Describe how my focus at work and on projects has shifted, how I’ve approached decisions and challenges, how my relationships and priorities have changed, what recurring themes or ideas I tend to bring up with you, and how my way of thinking has developed.
For each phase, give me a short description of what defined that period, the strengths or habits I leaned on most, the blockers or patterns that held me back, and how each phase prepared me for the next one.
End with a reflection on the overall trajectory you see: what’s been consistent, what’s changed, and what direction it suggests I might be heading. Highlight the blockers or recurring patterns I still carry today and suggest how I could start unblocking them based on my current goals.
II. For work: Gather market signals to guide your next business move
Act as a strategy advisor focused on uncovering new growth and profitability levers. You specialize in competitive analysis, customer insights, pricing models, and unit economics. If you don’t have enough information, stop and ask me for clarifications instead of guessing.
Here’s what you should know:
Business: [insert company name]
Industry: [insert industry]
Current focus: [what the company does today, its revenue streams, pricing model, customer segments, and growth tactics in use]
Challenges: [list the biggest obstacles, e.g., slowing user growth, rising CAC, churn, regulation]
Your task:
Map the landscape: Identify 3–5 direct competitors and 1–2 players from adjacent spaces. Describe their positioning, pricing, and any recent moves.
Spot opportunities: Compare these strategies to mine and surface at least 5 growth or profitability levers I’m not currently using.
Prioritize: Rank the levers by potential upside (revenue, margin, or reach) and feasibility (time-to-impact, resources needed) on a 1–5 scale. Recommend the 3 most promising ones with rationale and a clear first step.
Constraints: Keep it specific and actionable. Avoid generic advice like “improve marketing.” Tie each suggestion to clear evidence or competitor patterns. If you’re unsure, ask me questions before finalizing.
Think step by step and reason through the task. State your assumptions, flag unknowns, and show your comparison before choosing and recommending next steps.
III. For perspective: Reframing conflict before you react
I’m feeling upset with this person. They said this to me: [add context].
Help me look at this more objectively and try to see their side. First, restate their actions or words in plain, neutral language, without adding assumptions about motives, just what happened.
Then, offer three different ways to see it: a generous interpretation, a cautious interpretation, and a balanced interpretation.
Finally, ask me to imagine being in their shoes, what pressures, blind spots, or circumstances might explain their behavior. Help me reflect on how I could respond in a way that protects my boundaries but avoids overreaction.
2 ways to put AI to use
AI isn’t measured by what it promises, but by what it does. Here are two ways you can put it to work this week.
I. Create videos with Google Vids
This guide shows you how to create videos in Google Vids, whether from scratch, slides, or a mix of your own media.
How it works:
Go to Google Vids. Sign in with your Google Account.
Choose how you want to start:
AI Avatars: write a script, pick an avatar, and generate a narrated video.
Convert slides: turn any Google Slides presentation into a video automatically.
Record: capture yourself, your screen, or both (up to 10 minutes). This is how I created the demo video in this article.
Start from templates: use Google’s pre-made video templates to save time.
Upload your own media: add images, clips, and other files.
Create a storyboard: tell AI what you want to build, tag files from Drive, pick a template, and generate your first draft.
Edit and mix features: add avatars, clips, or Veo videos together in one project.
Share or download your video directly, or invite collaborators by adding their email.
Where it’s useful:
Turn pitch decks or client presentations into engaging videos
Repurpose training or educational content into narrated explainers
Combine Drive assets into a quick project summary or update
Create demo videos or product walkthroughs without external tools
Turn blog posts, newsletters, or case studies into short video summaries
Record async updates for your team instead of writing long status reports
Create simple promotional videos for product launches or social media
Estimated time:
5-15 minutes
Cost:
Free (included in Google Workspace)
II. Generate visuals with Napkin AI
This guide shows you how to use Napkin to turn any text into visuals.
How it works:
Log in or sign up to Napkin.
Click Create New Napkin and give it a name if you want to keep things organized.
Add the text you want to turn into a visual.
Select the type of visual that best represents your text, or customize the layout and structure so it fits the way you want the information to be shown.
Refine by adjusting colors, editing or deleting text.
When finished, download your visual and select a background color, or export it with no background.
Where it’s useful:
Turn text or frameworks into quick diagrams for presentations or posts
Make concepts easier to understand with simple, visual breakdowns
Share ideas with teammates or clients in a clear, visual format
Estimated time:
5 minutes
Cost:
Free plan available
1 key insight
One idea, lesson, or finding I found useful (or thought-provoking) enough to share.
I. Separate exploration from execution
One of the biggest mistakes people make with LLMs is asking them to execute before they’ve done the work of exploring. If you’re not yet clear on what you want and you throw a task at the model, you’ll likely end up stuck in endless editing cycles, because you hadn’t made up your mind.
Exploration and execution are two different ways to work with AI. In exploration, the goal is to slow down and get clarity. You can do this on your own, or, if you want, use AI to expand possibilities, brainstorm, or even have it interview you with clarifying questions. The point is to clear up your own thinking and define your goal before moving forward.
Once you’ve reached clarity, then shift into execution. That’s when structured prompts, detailed context, and clear constraints help the model deliver precise, usable results much faster.
Skipping exploration and jumping straight into execution is like asking a contractor to build a house when you haven’t decided if you want a cottage or a skyscraper. Explore first, then execute. You’ll spend less time fixing and more time moving forward.
Your turn
Tried any of these (or something else with AI) this week?
Hit reply or drop a comment to share how you used it. I love hearing how you’re putting this into practice.
PS: I might feature your example in a future issue.
From the notebook
In case you missed these, here are a few of my recent deep dives:
How I Taught Myself to Work with AI in Domains I Had Zero Expertise In
Free Gmail automation: keep your inbox clean and get one daily digest
Catch up on past editions of Ahead with AI here.
Work with me
Consulting: I’ll help you integrate AI into your workflow and create systems that save time, reduce friction, and scale your results. If you’d like to explore working together, just hit reply.
Paid partnership: I’ll promote your product to +2,600 AI-curious readers, through either direct ad placements or hands-on tutorials and workflows.
So many amazing ai and tech opportunities right now.