Every automation builder says the same thing: “We help businesses save time and scale with AI.” Cute. But when every headline sounds identical, clients can’t tell who’s different — so they default to price. That’s red-ocean thinking. Here’s how we flipped it: We stopped telling people what we do… …and started telling them what we don’t do. We don’t build vanity automations that sit unused. We don’t work with founders who think AI is a “magic wand.” We don’t touch a project unless we can tie it directly to ROI or headcount reduction. The moment we led with our omissions, three things happened: 1. The wrong clients disappeared. 2. The right ones leaned in. (“Finally, someone who gets it.”) 3. Our perceived value tripled overnight. That’s the paradox: saying no more clearly actually makes the yeses stronger. Omission marketing carves a lane your competitors are too afraid to claim. They’re busy pleasing everyone. You’re busy building a moat. When your “we don’t” becomes a filter, your positioning becomes a fortress. What would you fill in here? “We don’t build automations for ________________________” Drop your bold line in the comments. Let’s see who’s ready to stop swimming in the same bloody ocean.

Every automation builder says they save time. But time doesn’t move people to buy; money does. So instead of telling people what your automation does, show them what it’s worth. Here’s how. Find a business owner or client you know and ask if you can film one of their team members performing a real manual process...something repetitive that drains hours every week. It could be entering data into a spreadsheet. Processing invoices. Uploading reports. Or even sending follow-up emails. Set up your phone and record the entire process in time-lapse mode from start to finish. Even if it takes 90 minutes, capture it all. Then, ask for two things: 1. Their SOP — the official document that explains how that task is done, step by step. 2. A short interview with the person performing it, to understand what goes into it and how long it usually takes. Once you’ve studied the process, build the automation that can handle it. Then record your automation running live, in real time. Now, create a split-screen video: - Left side: the human process (in time-lapse) with a timer running. - Right side: the automation performing the same task, same output, same accuracy, with its timer running. But here’s the part that changes everything: Add a real-time dollar counter beneath both sides. On the left, it ticks up as the human spends time — simulating the labor cost (example: $28/hour × 1.5 hours = $42). On the right, it ticks down, showing the cost of automation (e.g., $0.25 per run). By the end of the video, the audience can see: - Time saved: 1 hour, 25 minutes - Money saved: $41.75 - Annual impact: $21,710 per employee You’ve just shown, in under 30 seconds, why automation isn’t a “tech thing.” It’s a profit multiplier. And you’ve done it without saying a single word. That single video becomes a marketing asset you can reuse everywhere: - On LinkedIn, it’s visual proof that kills objections instantly. - In sales calls, it becomes your “show, don’t tell” moment. - In email outreach, it’s your foot in the door:

My wife, @Larissa Miralles, has been talking about going to Greece since our wedding over a decade ago. The whitewashed buildings of Santorini. The crystal blue waters of Mykonos. The ancient ruins of Athens. She's practically memorized every travel blog on the subject. "Someday," we always said. You know how that goes. So last week, when she mentioned Greece for the 853rd time (I've been counting), I had a brilliant idea. Instead of booking flights, hotels, and taking time off work like a normal husband... I fired up some AI tools, typed up the perfect prompt…and BOOM – instant Greece vacation. Cost: Pennies Time invested: 6 minutes Marital goodwill earned: Absolutely zero When I proudly showed her my "solution," let's just say her reaction wasn't exactly what I'd hoped for. The temperature in our living room dropped about 20 degrees, and I'm pretty sure I heard ice forming on my coffee mug. "Is this a joke?" she asked in that special tone wives reserve for husbands who have spectacularly missed the point. Here's the thing about shortcuts in relationships: they're usually the longest route to where you actually want to go. As Alex Hormozi says, "The thing you're avoiding is exactly what you need to do." I was avoiding the effort of planning a real trip by creating a digital band-aid. The AI-generated "vacation" is now printed, framed, and hanging in our hallway, not as a celebration, but as a reminder that some dreams deserve more than a prompt and a prayer.

If you're a solo operator building AI or automation solutions, you've probably gotten really good at adapting to whatever your clients throw at you. Every project is different, every tech stack is a little weird, and every engagement ends up being this unique puzzle you’re proud to solve. And it works, for a while. Clients are happy. Referrals keep coming in, keeping you busy. But somewhere along the way, you realize you’ve built something that only works when you do. No team. No margin. No real leverage. Just you, your calendar, and a to-do list that never really lets up. Here’s the part most solopreneurs avoid thinking about: the same flexibility that got you this far might be the very thing keeping you stuck. Even if you have no intention of ever selling your business, you should still build like you might. Not because you're chasing a big exit, but because that mindset forces you to create something sustainable. Something that doesn’t fall apart the second you need a break. Saying yes to every custom build might feel like good client service, but it creates a business that resets with every engagement. You can't delegate your sales process. You can't step away without things stalling. And handing off delivery? Nearly impossible when everything lives in your head. When you're the product, you're also the bottleneck. And that’s a tough role to sustain long-term. Productization tends to get dismissed in tech circles. People hear the word and think “template” or “generic.” But for solopreneurs, it’s not about scaling big. It’s about breathing room. It’s about defining a clear service that doesn’t require a custom proposal or a rebuild every time someone’s interested. It’s about packaging what you do best in a way that’s consistent, understandable, and improvable without chaos. The ironic part? Most solo operators don’t want to sell their business. They didn’t start it for that reason. But the more custom their work becomes, the more their freedom disappears. If everything depends on your brain, your time, and your energy, you're essentially locked into the same grind you were trying to escape when you went solo.

Yesterday, I generated a photo of myself standing with the Justice League. At first, it was just a fun image, but then it got me thinking. Every hero in that lineup has their own unique ability, but none of them could take on the world alone. Their real power comes from combining strengths, leaning on each other, and showing up as a team. That’s precisely how networking works. One conversation can open a door. One introduction can collapse years of struggle into a single opportunity. One person can shift the entire trajectory of your business or your life. I learned this early on from one of my mentors, Jim Rohn. He taught me not to obsess over what I could get from an environment, but to constantly ask, “What am I becoming here?” That single shift changes how you see every job, every partnership, every connection. It’s not just about extracting value; it’s about transforming into someone who creates value. And who you surround yourself with accelerates (or sabotages) that process. Jim also reminded me that you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with. Think about that. Your network is not neutral. It’s either pulling you forward or holding you back. That’s why finding your “Justice League” matters. The right network doesn’t just add opportunities; it multiplies who you’re becoming. They challenge your comfort zones. They stretch your thinking. They help you see possibilities you’d miss on your own. And when you zoom out, success is rarely about doing everything faster or smarter. It’s about being in the right rooms, with the right people, having the right conversations, and letting those relationships shape you into the person capable of achieving your goals. The right relationship at the right time can be worth more than years of solo effort. So if you’re serious about growth, stop trying to “do it all” alone. Build your league. Invest in relationships. Surround yourself with people who see your potential and push you to rise into it.