Ryan Rouse

Growth advisor to consumer businesses with a focus on every line of the P&L | Previously, Co-Founder at Factor Meals (acquired), CEO at Highkey

Growth-minded CPG leader with deep experience across finance, brand building, and operational leadership.

After more than a decade in finance—culminating in an eight-year tenure at Merrill Lynch—I co-founded Factor_, a ready-to-eat meal delivery company that went on to be acquired by HelloFresh for $277M in 2020.

I joined HighKey Snacks as Chief Marketing Officer and later CEO, guiding the low-sugar snack brand through rapid expansion and an acquisition in 2024.

I'm currently the President of MALK Organics, a fast-growing, near nine-figure brand redefining the plant-based milk category with its commitment to clean, organic ingredients and uncompromising quality.

And I write a newsletter about what it really takes to grow—your company, your mindset, your tolerance for chaos:
​
​• The unfiltered truth about building a brand
• Why “strategy” isn’t always strategic
• What to do when everything feels on fire
• Mindset shifts that keep you sane(ish)​
• Founder mistakes, market moves, and lessons I’m still learning​
​
​Part playbook, part perspective shift.
For anyone trying to grow something—and keep their head on straight.

Sign up using the link here (or below my profile pic above): https://ryanrouse.me/

Vice President | Partner

Data driven investors in early stage consumer brands. 

The best people I've hired never complained about the workload.

Or the pressure.

They thrived on it.

They're burning out from the culture.

High performers can handle a lot. They're wired for it. They manage their time, stay focused, and actually like the work.

They don't leave because they're tired.

They leave because they're drained.

There's a difference.

Tired comes from hard work.

Drained comes from bad leadership, unclear priorities, and politics.

One recharges with rest.

The other doesn't go away until the environment changes.

If your top talent is checking out, don't assume they can't handle the work.

Ask yourself if they can handle the culture.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

We just launched a line of coconut-based creamers and they absolutely slap.

(Shout out to my kids who would cringe hard at that.)

No gums, no oils, no natural flavors. 

Just real, recognizable ingredients and a texture so creamy it'll make your coffee blush. 
​
🥥 Available in 3 flavors: Vanilla, Sweet Cream, and Unsweetened (for the purists)​
🥥 USDA Organic, non-GMO, glyphosate residue-free​
🥥 Clean label, full flavor: proof you don’t need additives to taste good ​
​
Hitting refrigerated shelves across the US as we speak. 

You should try them. For real.

Promoted two people today.

It's the best part of leadership.

Not the title changes. Not the org chart updates.

The part where you give great people room to run.

You watch them take ownership. Make decisions you wouldn't have made. Push ideas further than you could have alone.

And when you realize they didn't need you to tell them what to do.

They needed you to get out of the way.

That's the job.

Find people who are better than you at what they do.
Give them space to prove it.
Then watch them show the world what they're capable of.

Jayme and Barrett - you earned it many times over. I'm just happy to be a part of your journey and grateful you are part of mine.

I couldn't do any of this without you. 

Thank you 💙

The fastest way to get promoted?

Make yourself replaceable.

Sounds backwards. It's not.

I've watched talented people get stuck in roles for years. Not because they weren't good. Because they were too good at one thing.

They hoarded knowledge. Built processes only they understood. Made themselves "essential."

And their boss couldn't promote them.

Because who would do their job?

Meanwhile, the people who got promoted were doing the opposite:

Documenting everything.
Training their backup.
Building systems that worked without them.

They made it easy to backfill their role.

Leaders don't promote bottlenecks. They promote people who can be moved.

The employee who says "only I know how to do this" thinks they're proving value.

They're actually proving they're stuck.

The employee who says "here's the playbook, anyone can run this now" just showed they're ready for bigger problems.

Your job isn't to be irreplaceable at your current level.

It's to make your current role so transferable that promoting you becomes obvious.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

Entrepreneurs should think in two time frames:

30 years
90 days

I read this in a book by the legendary Dan Sullivan over a decade ago and it hurt my brain.

Because the more common advice is to regularly map out 1/3/5 year plans.

But the older I get and the more time I spend in early stage companies, I've moved more and more towards his away of thinking.

Cast a long term vision.
Execute what's in front of you.

It can be as simple as that.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Social media will have you believe if you haven't made millions by 30, you're late.

It's bullshit.

Warren Buffett made 99% of his wealth after 50.
Ray Kroc was 52 when he started McDonald's.
Vera Wang was 40 when she entered fashion.
The list goes on and on...

Know what those extra decades give you?

Pattern recognition. You've seen enough cycles to know which ones matter.

Scar tissue. You've failed enough to know it won't kill you.

The pressure to achieve young is manufactured. 

By people selling courses. By media celebrating outliers. By your own impatience.

You're not late. The game is longer than they tell you.

Good thing too. 

Because big moves develop over decades.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Your mood is not private.

It's broadcasting to everyone around you.

Show up to a meeting stressed, and watch what happens.

People tense up. Conversations get shorter. Ideas stop flowing.

Show up calm, and the opposite happens.

People relax. They think clearer. They bring solutions instead of panic.

I used to think emotions were personal.

Something I could feel without affecting anyone else.

I was wrong.

Every time I showed up frustrated, my team got quieter.
Every time I showed up anxious, my team got nervous.
Every time I showed up scattered, my team got confused.

They weren't reading my words.

They were reading my energy.

And matching it.

As a leader, your emotional state isn't just yours.

It spreads.

Like a cold. Like a yawn. Like panic in a crowded room.

The question isn't whether your emotions are contagious.

They are.

The question is: which ones are you spreading?

Because your team is catching whatever you're carrying.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

I used to think being intense was the problem.

It's not.

Letting other people control that intensity is.

I'm wired hot. Always have been.

It's helped me build things, push through walls, and get results most people won't.

But I also let it burn bridges I didn't need to burn.

The shift came when I stopped waiting for someone else to tell me to dial it down.

I learned to own the dial myself.

Still intense. Still emotional.

But now I decide when to turn it up and when to pull it back (most of the time, not perfect).

It's been the difference between intensity being an advantage vs. a liability.

Self-awareness isn't about changing who you are.

It's about controlling how you show up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

I've never been the smartest person at any company I've been at.

But I'm always the fastest.

At Merrill Lynch, I was 1 of 75,000 employees. Could've been the best analyst on the floor. Still replaceable.

At a startup? Different game.

My superpower wasn't an MBA or some fancy framework.

It was knowing how to find shit fast.

When my co-founder at Factor_ asked "How do other meal delivery companies handle returns?"

Everyone else: "Let me schedule some calls."

Me: Ordered from 3 competitors. Submitted returns. Pulled their policies. Built a framework. Done.

Couple of hours, tops. 

Founders already know how to find answers. That's how they got this far.

They're not asking you because they're lazy. They're drowning.

The employee who says "I researched this, here are three options, I recommend X because Y" - and did it FAST - becomes indispensable.

The one who says "I don't know, what do you think?" becomes overhead.

At early stage companies, resourcefulness and urgency beat credentials every time.

No waiting. No deferring. No "I was waiting for you to give me the go ahead."

Run. It. Down. 

And do it quickly. 

Leaders will notice. 

Trust me.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

5 things founders get wrong about employee motivation:

(From someone who got all 5 wrong)

1. Expecting owner-level commitment from employee-level equity.

You own 40% of the company. They own 0.1%.
You'll make millions if it works. They'll make rent.

Stop acting surprised when they work less hours.

2. Thinking your sacrifice is their baseline.

I worked for no salary for three years. Maxed out credit cards. Emptied my 401k. 

That was my choice. Not theirs.

Your personal bet doesn't become their obligation.

3. Using guilt instead of respect.

I used to send passive-aggressive Slack messages when people left on time. "Must be nice to have work-life balance."

Real asshole moves.

Then one of my best employees quit.

In his exit interview, he said: "Ryan, you chose to mortgage your house for this company. I didn't."

He was right.

4. Believing more equity will change how people work.

I once gave someone more equity expecting it to change their output. It didn't.

That's because everyone has a "work MO." A default gear.

If they're a killer, they'll be a killer.
If they do the bare minimum, they'll do the bare minimum.

Equity won't flip that switch.

(It will help retain the killers, tho.)

5. Confusing presence with productivity.

The person cranking until 9pm isn't always your best performer.

Sometimes they're just slow. Or inefficient. Or avoiding something at home.

Judge output, not hours.


The fix isn't complicated.

Find people who give a shit about doing good work.
Pay them well.
Respect their time.

They won't work until 10pm unless it's truly necessary.

But when it is necessary, they'll be there.

Because you hired people who are wired for it. 

And earned their trust.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

I used to think hustle meant force.

Push harder. Work longer. Make it happen.

That mindset nearly broke me by the time I turned 37.

I was always pressing, always grinding, convinced that if I just worked hard enough, success would come faster.

But the thing I learned watching people who actually win long term is they don't force it.

They create the conditions for success, then let it unfold.

They work hard, but they're not desperate.

They're confident things will work out because they've done the work.

So I stopped trying to control every outcome and started trusting the process more.

I still show up every day. I still put in the work. I'm still wildly ambitious.

But I'm not white-knuckling my way through life anymore.

And since I stopped forcing everything, more opportunities started showing up.

Better opportunities. Clearer decisions. Less stress.

Turns out, there's a difference between working hard and working anxious.

One builds momentum.

The other burns you out.

I'm playing the long game now.

And it feels a hell of a lot better than the sprint I was running before.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

I used to think winning arguments made me smart.

It didn't.

It made me insufferable.

Healthy debate has respect and curiosity.

Ego-driven arguing has neither.

One sharpens you.

The other isolates you.

In healthy debate, you ask questions to understand.
In ego-driven arguing, you ask questions to trap.

In healthy debate, you say "I hadn't thought of that."
In ego-driven arguing, you say "Yeah, but..."

In healthy debate, you admit when you're wrong.
In ego-driven arguing, you double down.

In healthy debate, you want to learn something.
In ego-driven arguing, you want to be right.

Here are some things that helped me:

1. Pause before responding. Ask myself if I'm trying to understand or trying to win.

2. Repeat back what I heard. "So what you're saying is..." Forces me to actually listen.

3. Find one thing I agree with first. Even in disagreement, there's common ground.

4. Ask "What am I missing?" Instead of explaining why I'm right.

5. End conversations with "That gave me something to think about." And mean it.

The shift won't be immediate.

But people will start engaging with you differently.

Conversations get richer.

Ideas get better.

Relationships get stronger.

If you catch yourself needing to have the last word, you're probably arguing from ego.

If you walk away from a conversation thinking differently, you're probably debating with curiosity.

Took me way too long to learn the difference.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Learn the rules like a pro so you can break them like an artist.

This Picasso quote gets twisted constantly.

People think it's about tactics. 

But it actually means master the fundamentals so deeply that innovation becomes instinct.

In business, I see this constantly:

The CMO who never ran a P&L trying to "disrupt" pricing strategy.

The founder who skips unit economics to chase viral growth.

The exec who wants to "break the mold" before understanding why the mold exists.

The best leaders I know spent years in the trenches.

Learning why things work before reimagining how they could work better.

They got creative because they got good first.

Master the boring stuff first.

Then go be an artist.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

All senior leaders need to be numbers people.

Doesn't matter if they're in marketing, ops, or product.

If they can't read a P&L, understand unit economics, or connect their decisions to revenue, they're not ready for the seat.

Not "build a financial model from scratch" numbers people.

Not "debate GAAP accounting" numbers people.

But you need to speak the language of business.

Because every decision either makes money or costs money.

And if you can't see that connection, you're flying blind.


—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

In consumer, your customers don't care how smart you are.

They care that their order arrives on time.

That you're in stock when they need you.

That your quality doesn't fluctuate batch to batch.

They're not buying your IQ score.

They're buying your ability to deliver on expectations - some general to the market and some specific to your product and promise.

That's all execution.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Your VP of Sales just quit mid-quarter.

No notice.

Just a call at 8am and a pile of deals in limbo.

That's when your team learned who you really are.

Your values aren't what you say in the good times.

They're what you do when everything's on fire.

You can preach respect all day long.

But if you lose your mind on someone when something goes wrong?

That's the real culture.

The version of you that shows up under pressure is the version that gets
replicated across your entire organization.

Not the polished one.

Not the prepared one.

The stressed one.

The frustrated one.

That's the leader your people will become.

So before you blame your team for losing their composure, poor communication or lack of ownership, ask yourself this:

What did I show them when things got hard?

Because they were watching.

And they learned.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

The most frequent question I get from entrepreneurs is "What advice would you give your former self?"

My answer: Pace myself.

They blow me off.

Not to my face, but I can tell.

I get it though.

I did the same thing when I was in their shoes.

Thought I was different.

That I could outwork the system.

That entrepreneurial fire made me feel invincible.

Until it didn't.

If you're putting in 80 hours a week consistently, it's not a matter of if you're gonna burn out, it's a matter of when.

Because you can't sustain that for the time required to play the long game. 

(Which is the only game in town.) 

Find your sustainable pace now before you're forced to. 

You're running a marathon, not a 100-yard dash.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Hard work is table stakes, not a flex. 

Your competitors work hard. 

It's necessary, but not sufficient. 

You also need to think in ways others don't. 

Most people default to putting in more hours because thinking hurts. 

It's easier to stay busy than to sit with a problem until you crack it.

I wish success in business was just about working harder. That would be simple. 

But the world doesn't give a shit about your hours.

It rewards people who create the most value. 

Value comes from seeing what others miss. 

From connecting dots in ways that seem obvious after but weren't before.

From working hard *and* smart.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it's free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Your manager isn't thinking about you nearly as much as you think they are. 

I promise. 

And that's a good thing. 

Carry on.

Most people think they're either risk-takers or they're not.

But that's not really how it work.

Risk isn't something you have a fixed capacity for.

It's something you build tolerance to.

Like lifting weights.

You don't walk into a gym and deadlift 400 pounds because you "have it in you."

You start small. 

Then add weight over time. 

Each rep expands what you can handle next time.

Risk works the same way.

The person who quit their corporate job to start a company didn't wake up one day with superhuman courage.

They made a series of smaller bets first.

A side project. A conversation. A decision to stop playing it safe in one area of their life.

Each one stretched the muscle.

So if you think you're not a risk-taker, you're probably right.

But it's not because you can't be.

It's because you haven't trained that muscle yet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

I help companies unlock the real ROI of AI.

As Founder of Boom Automations, I work with small, mid-market businesses, and investment firms to streamline operations, build AI agents, and implement automations that reduce costs, increase efficiency, and create a single source of truth across teams.

Alongside implementation, I run AiAllstars-a hands-on bootcamp and community where business leaders and operators learn how to apply AI and automation frameworks directly inside their organizations. In just 7 days, participants go from ideas to building live automations that save hours each week, with the confidence and skills to keep scaling their impact.

If you’re looking to implement AI systems in your business or to train your team to do it themselves-you’re in the right place.

Luke Pierce

One tab.

That's all I need to run my entire day.

You might remember my 6am AI email from a few weeks back.

I turned that into a full operating system.

Here's what I see every single morning:

→ AI-generated priorities (refreshes daily based on my calendar + tasks) 
→ Today's schedule pulled in automatically 
→ Pipeline with live revenue numbers 
→ Health data synced from my Garmin 
→ Weekly reports generated with one click 
→ Notes, content ideas, client docs — all in one place

This is how I set mine up. Yours can look completely different.

No more bouncing between 6 different apps. 
No more "what should I focus on today?" 
No more chaos before 9am.

One tab, everything connected, with a two-way sync with all my tools.

Built the whole thing in a weekend with Claude Code.

I put together a free guide showing how to build your own.

Like this post and drop "COMMAND" below and I'll send it over. (IMPORTANT: make sure we are connected so I can message you)

First 100 people also get my full integration playbook: the exact prompts and workflows to connect your calendar, CRM, and health data into one system.

3 years ago, I had no playbook running my automation agency.

I was quoting $5K for projects worth $40K. 
Saying yes to every client. 
Building everything from scratch every single time.

I remember one night at 2am, debugging an automation that should have taken 2 hours. It took 12. The client paid me $800.

That was the moment I realized that instead of building myself an agency, I had built myself a full time, underpaid job.

So I started documenting everything.

Every mistake that cost me money. 
Every sales call that went nowhere. 
Every client who became a case study.

80 teams later, I finally wrote it all down.

What's inside:

→ The 2026 automation landscape and where it's heading through 2028 
→ Positioning that gets you past "we already have an IT guy" 
→ Marketing engine: authority, content, and lead magnets 
→ Sales system: discovery, diagnosis, and ROI-driven closing 
→ Fulfillment: onboarding, mapping, build cycles, and handoff 
→ Developer hiring and building a high-performance tech bench 
→ Delivery standards: QA, architecture, and long-term stability 
→ Expansion revenue: upsells, retainers, and multi-department scaling 
→ The agency flywheel that makes each system compound

I'm posting this because I keep seeing people who've never run an AI automation agency teaching others how to run one.

This is the actual playbook I use to run mine.

Want access?

1. Like this post and comment "PLAYBOOK"
2. Make sure we're connected so I can message you

BONUS for the first 100 people: My full detailed pricing guide: exactly how to price yourself so you stop leaving money on the table.

Hot take from someone who literally implements AI for businesses:

Local attorneys and small businesses using voice AI are going to lose customers over the next 2 years to competitors who aren't using it.

I stay away from anything voice AI. Has anyone actually seen a real case study of this stuff working?

Here's why I'm skeptical:

I was talking to a friend yesterday. He called a local attorney and got three different callbacks over the next few hours.

Every. Single. One. Was a different person with a different accent.

He could immediately tell it was AI.

Guess which attorney he's NOT going with?

The whole point of a local business is the local part. The human connection. The trust.

When someone calls an attorney, they're usually stressed. They need reassurance. They need to feel like a real person gives a damn about their situation.

Instead they get... uncanny valley robot callbacks that feel like a scam?

If you're selling voice AI..  respect. Entrepreneurs gotta entrepreneur.

But I'm genuinely asking: has anyone actually seen this convert well for local service businesses?

Because from where I'm sitting, it looks like a trust destroyer.

What do you think?

12 months ago, you couldn't do this.

Today, anyone can build production-grade apps without writing code.

Thing thing is... most people who try "vibe coding" fail.

For the most part, this is because they skip the process - or don't even have a proper process to begin with.

They open Lovable or Cursor, type a vague prompt, get frustrated, and blame the AI.

The real problem people face is that they don't know: 

→ What to build 
→ How to communicate what they want 
→ How to get it across the finish line

About 6 months ago, we started offering full-stack app development to our consulting clients.

Not outsourced, but built in-house using AI tools.

Since then we've pushed 12+ apps to production.

Real apps for real teams with real results.

Here's what we learned:

You can't properly vibe code with the wrong prompts. 
You can't figure out what to build without the right process. 
You can't ship to production without proper testing and QA.

The process matters more than the tools.

So I put together the exact system we use.

Beginning to end. Discovery to deployment.

It covers: 

✓ Our workflow mapping framework (know what to build) 
✓ The complete prompting system for Claude + Lovable 
✓ Troubleshooting guide for when things break 
✓ How to review code (even if you don't code) 
✓ Testing & QA process 
✓ Setting up pilot programs 
✓ The full production deployment checklist

No fluff, just the playbook we actually use.

🎁 BONUS: The first 100 people also get 10 free Lovable credits to start building immediately.

Want it?

1. Like this post
2. Comment "VIBE" and I'll send it over.
3. Make sure we are connected so I can DM you.

These are the only 5 tools I use to 100x my output as an AI automation consultant.

There's so much noise right now...

New AI tools launching every day. 
Everyone has a different "must-have" stack. 
It's overwhelming.

But after 3+ years of building automation solutions for 80+ teams, I've narrowed it down to just 5.

These aren't trendy picks. These are the tools I actually use every single day to run my business:

Claude – my AI thinking partner
Claude Code – ships real code from my terminal
Gamma – presentations in minutes
Lovable – full web apps with prompts
n8n – connects everything

I break down exactly how I use each one in the carousel ↑

Save this post for later 🔖

And drop a comment – what's your #1 tool right now?

—
P.S. I teach all 5 of these in my AI All Stars 7-day bootcamp.

If you want to become an AI power user and learn how to 100x your output with these tools, early access to enrollment is open now.

This gets you first come, first serve access when enrollment opens this Sunday.

Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/eVXGENy6

2026 Stack

Just when you thought the biggest AI news of the week was going to be Apple partnering with Google to power the next generation of Siri, Anthropic drops Claude Cowork. 

The AI race isn't just speeding up anymore... it's accelerating at a pace that's hard to keep up with unless you're in the trenches every day.

I spent a couple of hours with Cowork last night, and I genuinely believe this has the potential to be the same kind of inflection point that ChatGPT was when it first launched. That's not hyperbole. What Anthropic has done is take the power of Claude Code, the tool developers have been using for months to automate complex workflows, and made it accessible to everyone. No terminal or coding experience required. Just give Claude access to a folder on your computer and tell it what you need done. Organize messy files, turn receipt screenshots into expense reports, draft reports from scattered notes. It handles it.

Here's my advice: don't overwhelm yourself trying to "learn" it before you start using it. Just download the Claude Desktop app, try it on a real task you've been putting off, and see what happens. Get your hands dirty. That's always been the fastest way to actually understand what these tools can do, and more importantly, what they can do for you.

What do you think of this rollout? Let's discuss in the comments.


----------------
P.S. These are exactly the types of developments I teach in AiAllstars, my 7-day bootcamp. I'm adding Cowork into the curriculum for our upcoming cohorts. 

If you want to join us, early enrollment access opens this Sunday.

Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/eVXGENy6

BREAKING: Apple just tapped Google’s Gemini to power its next generation of AI.

Super interesting move and honestly, a massive signal about where the industry is heading.

Apple rarely relies on outside tech… and choosing Gemini over every other model says a lot.

Google is quietly becoming the default AI layer for the biggest players.

This is how monopolies start: one “strategic partnership” at a time.

Big moment in AI. The consolidation is happening faster than people think.

Follow me Luke Pierce for more content like this.

Here's how to save months of headaches and lost funds on your next AI project.

Create ONE document before you write a single line of code.

I've seen companies blow $50k+ on AI builds that go nowhere.

Simply because nobody documented what they actually needed.

Here's the exact document we create before every build:

1. The Problem Statement

→ What specific pain are we solving? 
→ How much is this problem costing (time, money, missed opportunities)? 
→ What does "solved" actually look like?

If you can't answer these in 2 sentences each, you're not ready to build.

2. Current State Map

→ How does the process work today? 
→ Who touches it and when? 
→ Where does data live right now?

You'd be shocked how many clients can't answer these questions about their own workflows.

3. User Stories

→ "As a [role], I need to [action] so that [outcome]." 
→ Write one for every person who will touch the system. 
→ Prioritize: must-have vs nice-to-have.

This prevents the "oh we also need it to do X" conversations 3 weeks into development.

4. Data Requirements

→ What inputs does the system need? 
→ What outputs should it produce? 
→ What existing tools does it need to connect to?

AI is only as good as the data feeding it.

5. Success Metrics

→ How will we know this worked? 
→ What numbers are we measuring before and after? 
→ What's the timeline for evaluation?

No metrics = no way to prove ROI.

This document takes 2-3 hours to create.

It saves 2-3 months of rework, scope creep, and "that's not what I meant" conversations.

The unsexy truth about AI projects is that the build is the easy part.

The thinking is what separates success from expensive failure.

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2026 is the year every SaaS project management tool starts going to zero.


Had a call yesterday with a potential client.

Pretty big growth marketing firm. 
Some major name clients. 
Very successful business.

They told me they're thinking about switching from Motion to ClickUp.

Why?

Because Motion doesn't do one specific thing they need for their workflow.

So I told them... if you switch to ClickUp, you're going to run into the same problem. 

Other stuff you can't do. 
Other gaps you have to work around.

That's just how these platforms go.

Here's the problem with every off-the-shelf tool:

You're always bending YOUR business to fit THEIR software.

You create workarounds. 
You skip steps. 
You build shadow systems in spreadsheets. 
You accept "close enough."

And those workarounds compound, they create friction, and they cost you money you never see leaving.

The answer isn't switching from one rigid system to another rigid system.

It's building your OWN.

We're creating a demo for them: a custom AI-native operating system built exactly how their business actually runs.

Same process we use every time:

→ Sit down and learn the business inside and out 
→ Map every workflow before writing a line of code 
→ Daily demos for 8-12 weeks straight

We move fast enough that they see something new built and working every single day. Real feedback loops and iteration.

By the end, they have a system that fits like a glove.

No workarounds. No "close enough." No switching platforms every 18 months.

This is where business operations is heading.

Custom-built, AI-native, and YOURS.

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I've shipped 3 Ai-native operating systems for companies in the last 45 days.

The pattern is always the same.

Before we start, their information lives in 20 different places. Slack, CRM, spreadsheets, email, project management tools, people's heads.

Someone asks "what's the status of this client?" and it takes 5 minutes and 4 tabs to find out.

Multiply that by every employee, every day. That's thousands of hours gone.

After we build their Company Brain?

Everything runs from one place.

→ Data flows automatically between systems 
→ New hires onboard in days instead of weeks 
→ AI agents actually work because they can access everything 
→ Decisions happen fast because the info is already there

Here's the thing - this isn't complicated to build.

It's a 3-step process:

1. Map your workflows (intake to delivery, sales to fulfillment)
2. Pick a stack where the tools actually talk to each other
3. Build it, ship it, iterate
4. I break down the full process in the carousel.

By 2028, having a centralized operating system will be as normal as having a website.

The teams building now are going to have a massive head start.

♻️ Repost if your team needs this 
💾 Save for when you're ready to build

What's your biggest operational bottleneck? 👇

Company Brain

Last month a founder asked me to "fix" their $40K AI project.

It was built exactly as specified, but it wasn't working out for them.

The problem was the spec was wrong from day one.

No one documented what "success" actually looked like, mapped the current workflow, or asked the end users what they needed.

So the dev team built exactly what was asked for.

And it sat unused.

This is why we always use The Precision AI Blueprint in our projects.

It's 15 pages and contains the exact questions to answer before you write a single line of code.

The entire document is attached below.

Save this post and download the PDF.

It might save you $40K 😉 

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The Precision AI Blueprint

Tired of the guesswork with AI?

You've watched the tutorials. 
Downloaded the tools. 
Maybe even built a few custom GPTs.

But if you're being honest...

You still don't know what to actually DO with it.

You're not alone.

That's exactly where 84 people were before they joined the AI AllStars 7-Day Bootcamp.

Now they're automating workflows, saving hours every week, and finally seeing real results.

Here's my guarantee:

You won't just learn about AI.

You'll walk away with something you've actually implemented into your business, your team, or your daily routine.

AND you'll have the fundamentals to keep building long after the bootcamp ends.

There's nothing else like this on the market.

This round I'm only letting in 45 people.

Last cohort filled in 4 days.

Early access link is in the comments.

(If you're one of the 205 who already signed up for early access, you're set. No need to sign up again.)

Your team is wasting 2-3 hours per day on work that shouldn't exist.

Copy-pasting between tools. 
Hunting for information across 15 apps. 
Manually sending the same emails over and over. 
Creating reports by pulling from 6 different spreadsheets.

For a 10-person team, that's $375K-$562K per year in lost productivity.

I put together the complete playbook to cut this in half.

It's in the carousel below — save it, screenshot it, or download the whole thing as a PDF.

Here's what's inside:

→ The two paths to automation (and how to choose) 
→ Phase 1: How to map every workflow in your business 
→ Phase 2: Auditing your current tech stack (red flags to look for) 
→ Phase 3: Designing your ideal stack 
→ Phase 4: Building an implementation plan that actually works 
→ Phase 5: Running a pilot program before full rollout 
→ Phase 6: Full implementation + change management 
→ Phase 7: Testing and ongoing QA

It's the exact process we use with clients.

Save this.

—

What's the most time-consuming manual task in your business right now?

Drop it in the comments 👇

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How to Cut Manual Work by 50%

It's January 26th.

The first month of 2026 is almost gone.

If you're feeling like the year is already flying by... you're not alone.

If you're overwhelmed by everything on your plate... keep going.

If things aren't moving as fast as you hoped... stay the course.

Time waits for no one, but that's not a reason to panic—it's a reason to stay focused.

Keep your faith, trust the process, and never give up.

The people who win aren't the ones who never struggle. 

But they ARE the ones who refuse to quit when it gets hard.

This week, finish strong. 

Then do it again next month.

Let's go!

This weekend, Clawdbot took the world by storm.

60,000+ GitHub stars in weeks. Cloudflare stock jumping 12%. Tech Twitter losing its mind.

Why?

Because this is what we've been waiting for AI to actually be.

Clawdbot is a 24/7 AI assistant that:

→ Lives in WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord — apps you already use 
→ Remembers your preferences, conversations, and ongoing tasks 
→ Actually takes action — clears your inbox, books flights, manages your calendar 
→ Reaches out to YOU with morning briefings and alerts 
→ Runs on your own hardware so your data stays private

I put together a full setup guide (attached) that walks you through everything:

✅ Installation on Mac, Linux, or Windows 
✅ Connecting WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord 
✅ Configuring skills and automation 
✅ Security setup (don't skip this)
✅ Troubleshooting common issues

I'm also dropping a complete video walkthrough on my YouTube channel this week.

Subscribe so you don't miss it: https://lnkd.in/edyNHMrC

The people setting this up now will have a massive advantage.

What's the first task you'd hand off to a 24/7 AI assistant?

How to Setup Clawdbot (Moltbot)

2026 is the year AI stops being a buzzword and starts being a process.

Not a tool you bolt on, or a feature you add, but a deliberate, repeatable system that transforms how work gets done.

After 80+ implementations, here's the framework that makes AI actually stick:

5 Phases (In order and built to last). 

𝟭. 𝗗𝗜𝗦𝗖𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬 
↳ Stakeholder interviews 
↳ Pain point identification
↳ Tool & software audit 
↳ Data source inventory 
↳ Success metrics definition 
↳ Quick win identification

𝟮. 𝗠𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗜𝗡𝗚
↳ Current state documentation 
↳ Workflow visualization 
↳ Bottleneck identification 
↳ Data flow mapping 
↳ Decision point analysis 
↳ Handoff documentation

𝟯. 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗜𝗠𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 
↳ Eliminate redundant steps 
↳ Standardize variations 
↳ Automation candidate scoring 
↳ New workflow design 
↳ KPI framework development 
↳ Change management planning

𝟰. 𝗗𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗟𝗢𝗣𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 
↳ Tool selection 
↳ Integration architecture 
↳ Automation building 
↳ Database design 
↳ Dashboard & UI development 
↳ Testing & documentation

𝟱. 𝗢𝗣𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 
↳ Performance monitoring 
↳ User feedback collection 
↳ Iterative refinement 
↳ Scaling successful patterns 
↳ Team training 
↳ Continuous improvement cycles

Here's what I've learned:

The teams winning with AI are mastering the fundamentals: Discovery, Mapping, Process Improvement... before they write a single line of code.

That's where the magic happens.

Get phases 1-3 right, and phase 4 almost builds itself.

Make sure to save this post and the mind map below to refer back to.

What phase does your team spend the most time on?

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I keep seeing this YouTube ad: "Learn these 5 AI skills or you won't have a job in 5 years."

Here's my problem with that.

(Even though, objectively speaking, it's a great marketing hook)

Nobody knows what AI skills will be "required" in 5 years. Not the YouTuber running that ad. Not the gurus selling fear. Not me. The technology is evolving so fast that anyone claiming to have a definitive list is guessing at best and manipulating you at worst.

So stop stressing about some checklist you saw in a 60-second ad.

Here's what I've learned from spending the last 3+ years helping teams actually implement automations, and now AI into their operations. The people who succeed aren't the ones frantically trying to master every new tool that drops. They're the ones who built simple habits early and stuck with them.

Get into the tools yourself. Pick one. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, it doesn't matter. Commit to 30 minutes a day of actually using it. Not watching tutorials about it. Not reading articles about it. Using it. Hands on keyboard, throwing real tasks at it, learning what it's good at and where it falls short.

Start asking yourself one question constantly: "Is this something AI can assist me with?" Every task you do. Every email you write. Every report you pull together. Every piece of content you create. Just pause and ask. You'll be surprised how often the answer is yes, and you'll be equally surprised how often the answer is no, but now you know.

If you're running a team or a business, take it a step further. Map out your workflows. Look at where your people are spending time on repetitive, predictable tasks. Analyze where AI can realistically plug in versus where it's just a shiny distraction. Go through a real process instead of guessing.

The fundamentals haven't changed. Curiosity. Experimentation. Applying new tools to real work and seeing what sticks. That's how people adapted to spreadsheets, to email, to the internet, and that's how people will adapt to AI.

The people who thrive five years from now won't be the ones who panicked and chased every trend. They'll be the ones who started building the habit today.

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A client came to us last month after being stuck in development for 6 months.

We delivered in 7 days.

Here's the story:

After successfully rolling out our first project for this client, they came back to me a couple weeks later with something else. They had an AI product they were building for their customers. Something that was supposed to be a game-changer for their business.

They'd been working with another company for 6 months: paying invoices, sitting through status calls, and watching timelines slip.

And they still didn't have anything to show for it.

So they asked if we could take it over.

One week later, it was done and in their customers' hands.

I find this interesting..

The company they were working with before wasn't some kid in a basement. 

It was an established firm, and a big player in their industry.

There's a lot of smoke and mirrors in AI and automation right now. 

Flashy demos. 
Big promises. 
Websites that look the part.

But execution is a different story.

If you're evaluating an AI or automation partner, do your homework. Ask about their experience. What kind of companies have they actually delivered for? Can they show you real results?

And if you're currently working with someone and it's not going well, or you've been burned before and don't know where to turn, shoot me a DM.

I'll take a look and see what we can do.

If your team is wasting hours every week and you're not sure why…

I don't think another n8n automation is the answer.

I think it's much bigger than that.

Most companies are running their operations across 5-10 disconnected apps.

→ A CRM here. 
→ A project tool there. 
→ Spreadsheets everywhere. 
→ Slack threads that disappear.

And every day, your team wastes hours context switching between them.

Asking "where's that file?" and "did anyone update the tracker?"

This is the hidden tax on growth.

The old solution was to stitch together Airtable + Softr + Zapier and pray it holds.

But here's what's changed in 2025:

You can now build a full-stack, AI-native operating system from scratch.

→ Custom to YOUR workflows. 
→ 8-12 weeks from discovery to production. 
→ Full control over every feature. 
→ No platform limitations holding you back.

And the ROI is undeniable:

→ Zero context switching. 
→ No more "where's that info?" Slack pings. 
→ Data lives in ONE place. 
→ AI agents that actually work because they have structure.

This is the highest-ROI investment you can make with AI right now.

Not another chatbot.

Not another workflow that breaks when you scale.

A central nervous system for your entire business.

This is exactly what my team at Boom Automations is building.

AI agents + AI-native custom systems.

Purpose-built for how YOUR company operates.

This is the future, and we're at the forefront.

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BREAKING: Amazon just announced another 16,000 layoffs.

In October, it was 14,000.

That's 30,000 corporate employees gone in 4 months.

At this rate, is "quarterly layoff" becoming a line item on the calendar?

Here's how I'm interpreting this:

Amazon is calling this an "anti-bureaucracy push." 

Translation: middle management is getting crushed.

The layers between "person doing the work" and "person making decisions" are being removed, and fast.

This isn't unique to Amazon. It's the playbook now:

→ Flatten the org chart 
→ Replace coordination roles with AI tools 
→ Expect ICs to operate more autonomously

If your job is primarily "managing information flow" or "coordinating between teams", that's exactly what AI does exceptionally well now.

The roles that survive:

↳ People who build 
↳ People who sell 
↳ People who make decisions with real accountability

Everyone else is in the danger zone.

What do you think... is this the new normal?

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