Use AI to Get Your Time Back
June 14, 2025
I gave up so much to get where I'm at in life. It was necessary... I grew up in poverty and fortunately found coding at 14 which changed everything. That discovery saved me, but it also consumed me.
For years, I put in a fuck-ton of work. Nights, weekends, holidays. While friends were out living, I was debugging. While they slept, I was learning. It paid off financially, sure. But the cost? Time. Always time.
Now I'm doing everything to get it back.
The Guilt That Eats You Alive
You know that feeling when you're playing with your kids but your mind's on that production bug? When your wife's talking about her day but you're mentally reviewing code? That guilt used to follow me everywhere. Even when I was "present," I wasn't really there.
The irony? I escaped poverty through technology, built a successful life, achieved everything I thought I wanted... and I was still a prisoner. Just a different kind of cage.
Walking the Walk with AI
I'm not just talking about AI theoretically here. I'm using it every single day to systematically reclaim my life. Not in some distant future... right now.
Here's what's actually running in my business:
Research Assistant That Never Sleeps
I built a simple system that monitors AI developments across Reddit, HackerNews, research papers, and industry blogs. Every morning, I get a summary of what actually matters. No more doomscrolling Twitter at 11 PM "just to stay current."
Here's a piece of my CLAUDE.md for the research system:
## Research Summary Requirements
- Monitor these sources: r/LocalLLaMA, r/ClaudeAI, HN threads about AI
- Only flag items with 50+ upvotes or significant discussion
- Summarize in 3 bullet points max per item
- Include one actionable insight for Algarch
- Skip drama, focus on technical advances
Business Request Handler
Every inbound business request goes through an AI assistant first. It qualifies leads, answers basic questions, and only escalates what truly needs my attention. Last month it handled 73 conversations. I personally dealt with 4.
The prompt engineering here was crucial:
## Lead Qualification Criteria
- Budget indicator phrases: "investment", "pricing", "cost"
- Urgency markers: "ASAP", "urgent", "timeline"
- Technical depth: Do they understand what they're asking for?
- Decision maker signals: "we", "our team", "my company"
If score < 7/10, provide helpful resources and log.
If score >= 7/10, escalate with summary.
The Summary System That Changed Everything
This one's my favorite. Every hour I get an SMS with what happened in my business. Not a 47-email thread. Not a Slack channel with 200 messages. Just the facts.
A real example from yesterday:
Algarch Summary (8h)
3 convos, 1 qualified lead
Lead: SaaS founder needs AI integration
Topics: RAG implementation, timeline 2 weeks
Action: Call scheduled tomorrow 2PM
That's it. I know exactly what happend without opening a single app.
The Technical Reality
Let me show you exactly how to build this stuff. It's simpler than you think.
Step 1: Start with Clear Context
Your AI is only as good as your instructions. Here's a template that actually works:
# Assistant Role
You are my business operations assistant. You help me stay informed without overwhelming me.
# Core Principles
1. Brevity over completeness
2. Action over information
3. Escalate only what matters
# What Matters
- Qualified leads ready to buy
- Technical questions I must answer personally
- Urgent issues affecting current clients
# What Doesn't
- Tire kickers asking about price first
- Generic "can you help us" emails
- Anything you can handle with our resources
Step 2: Use Tools That Already Exist
You don't need to build everything from scratch. I use:
- Claude API for conversation handling
- Twilio for SMS summaries
- Simple cron jobs for scheduling
- Basic webhooks for integrations
Here's a real Claude Code command I use daily:
claude "Summarize these customer conversations from today.
Focus on: 1) Who's ready to buy 2) Technical blockers
3) Follow-ups needed. Keep it under 160 chars for SMS."
Step 3: Start Small, Iterate Fast
My first "AI assistant" was literally a prompt template. It sucked. But it was 10% better than doing everything manually. Then 20%. Then 50%.
Don't try to automate everything at once. Pick one painful, repetitive task. Automate that. Feel the time come back. Then do another.
The Mindset Shift That Matters
Here's what nobody tells you about using AI for productivity... it's not about doing more. It's about doing less of what doesn't matter.
I used to pride myself on answering every email personally. Reading every forum post. Being "hands-on" with everything. That wasn't leadership. That was fear. Fear that if I wasn't involved in everything, it would all fall apart.
AI forced me to confront that fear. To define what actually matters. To trust systems instead of grinding harder.
The Uncomfortable Truth
Most developers won't do this. You know why? Because we're addicted to being needed. To being the hero who saves the day. To knowing everything that's happening.
AI threatens that identity. If a model can handle customer questions... what makes you special? If it can summarize better than you can read... what's your value?
Here's your value: The creative work only you can do. The strategic decisions that need human judgment. The relationships that require real presence.
Everything else? Let it go.
Practical Implementation Guide
Let's get specific. Here's how to start tomorrow:
Day 1: Audit Your Time Track everything for one day. Every email, every Slack message, every "quick question." You'll be shocked how much is noise.
Day 2: Pick Your Biggest Time Suck For me, it was customer support emails. Maybe for you it's code reviews, meeting notes, or status updates.
Day 3: Write Your First CLAUDE.md
# [Task] Assistant
## Your Role
Handle [specific task] so I can focus on [what matters].
## Success Criteria
- I spend less than [X] minutes daily on this
- Quality stays same or improves
- Nothing important gets missed
## How to Handle
[Specific instructions based on your needs]
Day 4-7: Test and Refine Your first version will miss things. That's fine. Add examples of good/bad handling. Refine the criteria. Make it yours.
Week 2: Add Measurement Track how much time you're saving. When you see that first hour come back... you'll be hooked.
The Systems Running Right Now
As I write this, my AI systems are:
- Qualifying 2 inbound leads
- Summarizing 14 Reddit threads about AI advances
- Drafting responses to 3 routine questions
- Monitoring my client projects for issues
I'll review it all in a 5-minute summary at 4 PM. Or maybe I won't. Maybe I'll trust the system and play with my kids instead.
The Real Cost of Not Doing This
Every day you don't automate is a day you can't get back. Every evening spent on busywork is an evening your kids get older without you. Every weekend "catching up" is a weekend your life passes by.
I know because I lost years this way. Years I can't recover. But you still can.
Start Today
Don't wait for the perfect AI tool. Don't wait to understand every parameter. Don't wait for permission.
Open Claude. Write this:
Help me reclaim 1 hour today by handling [your biggest time waster].
Here's what I currently do: [description]
Here's what actually matters: [core value]
Create a simple system I can implement now.
That's it. That's how it starts.
The Payoff
Last weekend my 4 kids, wife, and I played Jackbox. Two years ago, I would've said "maybe later" while staring at my laptop. While laughing our butts off my phone buzzed. AI summary: "All good. No action needed."
I didn't even read it until after bedtime. And you know what happend to my business? Nothing. It ran perfectly.
That's what AI gives you. Not just time. Freedom. Freedom from the endless grind. Freedom from guilt. Freedom to be present in your actual life.
Your Move
I shared my systems. I showed you the prompts. I gave you the blueprint. The only thing standing between you and reclaiming your time is starting.
What will you automate first?
More importantly... what will you do with the time you get back?
Because in the end, that's what actually matters. Not the AI. Not the automation. Not the technology.
The life you build with the time you reclaim.
That's the real victory.