This week
I've moved from Substack to my own home at cleverest.me. My tutorials and articles live there now, and this newsletter sends from here. Same work, new address.
I'm building a series for people who want to use Claude Code but don't come from a technical background. My latest tutorial covers what I wish someone had shown me upfront about working with Claude Code in the terminal: a handful of navigation commands, a few keyboard shortcuts, and the core Claude Code commands.
What I'm reading
Why CEOs are getting AI wrong — Ethan Mollick (guest), Scott Galloway (host) / The Prof G Pod. I spent 10 months on maternity leave in 2024-2025 and as I watched release after release of AI models and tools, it felt like I was riding a bicycle while everyone was blazing by in rocket ships. But I wasn't really that behind. And neither are you. If you do feel behind, listen to Ethan Mollick's interview on this podcast. He reminds us that even now, nobody has a playbook. Everyone is figuring this out at the same time. He emphasizes the importance of creative freedom to experiment and advocates for taking AI for a ride along on a typical workday.
What the hell is a zero-employee business? — Evan Armstrong / The Leverage. Evan Armstrong argues that when building is cheap, the competition moves to taste, distribution, and attention. Everyone building a new business in today's world (including me) ought to take note.
AI was supposed to free my time. It consumed it. — Katie Parrott / Every. Katie Parrott on the slot machine mechanics of AI use. Researchers found that the unpredictable quality of AI responses triggers dopamine the same way casino payouts do — most pulls return something decent, a few return nothing, and occasionally you get something brilliant enough to keep you hooked. She calls it the "AI genie phenomenon": why close the laptop when the next prompt might solve the problem you've been stuck on for weeks?
Slow note
Speaking of slot machines, I rebuilt my website this week using Claude Code. And I could not stop. One more prompt, one more tweak, instant results. Every evening after my daughter went to bed, I was right back at it.
I've been intentionally practicing the physiological sigh to break the cycle. Double inhale through the nose, long exhale through the mouth. Andrew Huberman explains the science in his Tools for Managing Stress & Anxiety episode. It helps me close my laptop and take a break.