AI your IT guy would approve.
I'm the IT guy, and a developer. I build AI systems for small businesses and run my own company on them. Learn the habits that make AI genuinely useful for your work and your ideas, without putting your data, your money or your reputation at risk.
No card needed for the free module.
I want to write a proposal for [CLIENT]. Before you write anything, ask me the questions you need answered to do this well. Ask them one at a time. When you have enough, show me a short plan and wait for my OK.
- projects built with AI this year
- 50+
- systems shipped for real businesses
- 20
- real prompts behind the lessons
- 10,000+
- industries, from manufacturing to healthcare
- 10+
Counted from my own project folders and AI tool logs, March to October 2026. The prompt count adds my daily chat use since late 2022.
The method
One habit runs everything: plan → approve → do → log
It's the same loop that runs support tickets at my IT company. AI does the legwork. You stay in charge of every decision that matters. Start with AI planning and you approving everything. As it earns your trust, let it run more of the loop on its own.
- 1
plan()Plan
AI reads what it needs and tells you what it would do. Read only: nothing changes yet.
› 23 new emails. 6 need replies. Drafts ready. Nothing sent.
- 2
approve()Approve
You decide. Edit it, approve it or say no. Nothing goes out without your OK.
› You: send 1 to 4 as written, fix 5, skip 6.
- 3
do()Do
AI does exactly what you approved. Nothing more, nothing it wasn't asked to touch.
› Sent 4 replies. Rewrote 1. Touched nothing else.
- 4
log()Log
AI writes down what it did, so you, your team or a fresh chat can pick it up later.
› 10:42 Replied to 4 clients. Flagged 1 for Thursday.
The loop stays the same. How much AI runs on its own grows.
- 1
Read and tell me
stops after plan()AI plans, then stops. A co-founder I work with has AI check three inboxes every hour and flag only what needs a reply. It never sends a thing.
- 2
Draft it for me to approve
waits at approve()AI plans and drafts. Nothing goes out until you say yes. Good for client replies and follow-ups.
- 3
Do it and log it
runs do() and log()For small jobs you can undo, AI acts inside the limits you set and logs every step. Good for filing email or tagging tickets.
Money, legal and anything you can't undo stay at rung 2. Every time.
Who it's for
For anyone with real work to do or a big idea to build.
People with an idea
An app, a tool, a side business, a better way to do something. Go from idea to something real with AI, without the messes I made first.
Owners and professionals
Advisors, agents, contractors, office managers. The inbox, quotes and follow-ups that eat your week, inside your industry's rules.
Total beginners
Never used AI for anything real? Start from zero, in plain English, with nothing to install.
Teams
Get your whole staff using AI the same safe way, with progress you can see.
The curriculum
Six modules, rated like ski runs: green to double black.
- Module 1Green runFree
Start here: set up your AI desk
What AI is good for, a real win by lesson two, and one tool set up so it knows you and your work.
6 lessons
- What AI is actually good for
- Your first win: a clear, kind reply
- Brief it like a new hire
- Interview before you build
- What never goes in
- Set up your desk
- Module 2Green runMembers
Stay in control: guardrails that keep you safe
Simple habits that keep AI from changing, sending or deciding things you didn't approve.
5 lessons
- Read only first
- Diagnose, don't fix
- Write your rules down once
- Trust, but check
- Humans sign off
- Module 3Blue runMembers
Make it remember: memory, handoffs and reuse
Why AI forgets between chats, and the simple habits that let it pick up where you left off and reuse what already works.
4 lessons
- End every session with a handoff
- Give it your business
- Clone what works
- Define your numbers once
- Module 4Blue runMembers
Get better answers
How to get AI to push back, get a second opinion, tighten your instructions, research with sources you can check and pick the right model.
5 lessons
- Make it argue with you
- Get a second opinion
- Run it, paste it back, tighten it
- Research it, then check the receipts
- Use the right model for the job
- Module 5Black diamondMembers
From chats to systems
Turn one-off chats into routines you stay in charge of, from a daily check that flags what needs you to one workflow you score on real work.
6 lessons
- Plan, approve, do, log
- Slices and save points
- Give it a time box and a fence
- Make it run: a daily action digest
- When to bring in a builder
- Your one workflow: build it, score it, keep it
- Module 6Double blackMembers
Build your own idea
Take an idea from a hunch to a small real version that real people have tried, while keeping it safe and keeping it yours.
5 lessons
- From idea to one sentence
- Interview first, then a one-page plan
- Build the smallest real version
- Test it with real people and real data
- Keep it safe and keep it yours
Workshops
Bring it to your team or your group.
Some people learn best in a room together. I teach live, in person or online, and every format follows your company's rules on which AI tools are allowed.
Lunch and learn
60 to 90 minutes
Networking groups, chambers and associations
A live walk-through of plan → approve → do → log on real examples, and the "what never goes in" checklist everyone leaves with.
Team workshop
Half day
An office or a department
Hands-on: everyone sets up their AI desk and builds two prompts for their actual job, inside your company's approved tools and rules.
Team boot camp
4 weeks
Companies training their staff
Weekly live sessions plus a seat in the platform for each person, with a progress view so you can see who's keeping up.
Membership
Everything you need to make it stick.
Every lesson
Short, practical lessons with a this-week exercise at the end of each one.
Prompt library
Copy-ready prompts for email, meetings, sales, planning and safety checks.
Field notes
The real mistakes, what they cost, and the rule I follow now.
Community
Ask questions, share wins, and see how other members are using it.
Live calls
Group calls and office hours, with replays when you can't make it.
Safety first
What never goes into an AI chat, and how to keep a human in charge.
Field notes
I made the mistakes so you don't have to.
Months of error emails, and my first rule was read only
I inherited a metal fabrication shop's automations, and they had been sending error emails for months. Before AI touched anything, my first instruction was "Do not edit, delete or change anything. Read only." I had it write a plain-English map of every workflow, then diagnose what was failing before we fixed a single thing.
The rule now: When you inherit a system, let AI read it and explain it before it's allowed to change anything.
The same failures kept coming back
At that same metal fabrication shop, the same failures kept coming back after each fix. So we rebuilt instead of patching again. We ran the old and new systems side by side and compared their outputs before switching over. I also had the reports rewritten with no tech jargon, because "these are metal fabrication guys."
The rule now: When the same failure keeps coming back, rebuild, and run old and new side by side before you switch.
The rental report invented a neighborhood
For a property manager, we built a tool where you type in an address and a rental analysis PDF lands in your email a few minutes later. Early versions invented a neighborhood name that doesn't exist. The fix was a loop: run it, paste the output back, point out exactly what's wrong, and tighten the instructions. Now the expensive model writes the client-facing PDF and cheaper models do the rest.
The rule now: AI will fill gaps with confident fiction, so run it, check it and tighten the instructions until the output holds up.
Your teacher
Ben Brewer
IT business owner and developer
I'm an IT guy who's also a developer. I've been using AI since the day it became publicly accessible, and testing new models ever since. I taught myself to build web apps and code the systems behind them, and now I build them with AI for small businesses. I run my own IT company on these habits every day. This is everything I learned, including the mistakes.
Pricing
Pick your run.
Every trail starts free. Go as far as you want, at your own pace.
- Green run
First chair
Curious, or brand new to AI.
- Module 1: set up your AI desk
- Field notes
- Sample prompts
- Blue run
Season pass
Best place to startYou use AI every week and want it to stick.
- All six modules
- The full prompt library
- Community
- Monthly live call and replays
- Black diamond
Coached
You want eyes on your real work.
- Everything in the Season pass
- A 45-minute 1:1 with me every month
- Questions answered within 2 business days
- Black diamond
Trail map
You know AI could save you time. You want to know where.
- A 90-minute working session on your real week
- Your top 3 workflows, ranked by hours saved and risk
- Each one rated: read, draft or do
- One workflow set up live with you
- Double black
Done with you
You're ready to put AI to work in your business.
- A 2 to 4 week sprint on one real workflow
- We plan, approve, do and log it together
- Handoff docs your team can follow
- 30 days of support after
- Backcountry
Build on Swirls
Apply onlyYou're building your own agentic platform from the ground up.
- Architecture sessions for complex workflows, agents and apps
- Reviews of your workflows and Swirls code
- Weekly office hours and a private channel
- A guide who builds on Swirls every day
Swirls is the platform you hand your AI agent. Security and an audit trail come built in, so you build the workflow, not the guardrails. It's what I build my own company's systems on.
All prices are in US dollars. Paid plans renew automatically until you cancel, and you can cancel anytime from your billing page. Not for you? Email us within 7 days of your first payment for a full refund.
Ski school for teams
Group lessons for your staff, your chamber or your agency. Every format follows your company's rules on which AI tools are allowed.
- Lunch and learn
- 60 to 90 minutes, up to 30 people
- $1,500 flat
- Team workshop
- Half day, up to 25 people
- $4,500 flat
- 4-week boot camp
- 10-person minimum. Ask about volume pricing for 50+
- $400 a person
- Team seats
- The full platform for your staff, 5-seat minimum
- $39 a seat a month
- Private lesson
- One hour 1:1, no membership needed
- $200 an hour
Questions
Fair questions.
Do I need to be technical?
No. If you can write an email, you can do this. Every lesson is plain English, and the first module starts from zero.
Which AI tool do I need?
Whichever one you already have or your company allows: ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft Copilot or Gemini. The habits matter more than the tool.
I work in insurance or finance. Is this safe for me?
Safety is built into every module: what never goes into a chat, checking your firm's approved tools, and keeping a human in charge of anything that matters. Always follow your compliance team's rules.
Can I train my whole team?
Yes. Team plans come with an invite link and a progress view so you can see who's keeping up.
What if it's not for me?
Module 1 is free, so try it first. Memberships are month to month and you can cancel anytime.