Ever feel like you're trapped in your own business success? In this solo episode, Mike shares his recent automation disaster in a St. Louis medical center waiting room and reveals why that frustration led to a breakthrough framework for building an AI Co-Founder that actually works.
Discover the three "missing partners" every solopreneur needs, learn from Mike's Zapier experiment gone wrong, and get the exact 4-step process for building your first AI assistant that saves you 20+ hours per month.
Key Takeaways
The Three Missing Partners Every Solopreneur Needs:
The Strategic Sounding Board (who asks the tough questions you avoid)
The Brainstorming Buddy (who breaks through creative blocks)
The Diligent Assistant (who handles the "admin avalanche")
Why Mike's Zapier AI Agent Failed (And What It Teaches Us):
Tried to make one AI wear too many hats
Gave vague instructions instead of specific constraints
Forgot that AI amplifies systems, it doesn't create them
The 4-Step Process to Build Your First AI Assistant:
The Brutally Honest Time Audit
Pick Your First Victory (one specific, repetitive task)
Deconstruct Like You're Training an Intern
Build and Test Your AI Agent v1.0
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to AI for Solopreneurs
00:05 The Solopreneur Struggle with AI
04:04 The Three Missing Partners
06:56 Lessons from a Failed AI Experiment
08:08 Building Your AI Co-Founder
11:29 Practical Steps to Implement AI
19:38 The Solopreneur Scalability Audit
21:42 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Resources Mentioned
🔗 Take the Solopreneur Scalability Audit: theaihat.com/scalabilityStop guessing where your time goes - get your real numbers in 15 minutes
📖 Mike's AI Agent Reality Check: When AI Agents Meet Reality: My Hour-and-a-Half Wake-Up Call
🎯 Work With Mike: theaihat.com/work-with-me
Full Transcript: https://theaihat.com/tired-of-flying-solo-how-to-build-your-ai-co-founder/
Questions for Reflection
What's your biggest "time vampire" - the repetitive task that drains your energy daily?
If you could clone yourself for just one business function, what would it be?
What automation project have you started but never finished?
Connect & Continue the Conversation
💬 Let's discuss: Drop a comment on Spotify or YouTube - what do you think your biggest time drain is right now?
📱 DM Mike on Instagram: @mike.allton for specific AI assistant guidance
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