Chapter 11 — Where to go from here
The last one
Sometime this month, one person you know will complain about a pile, a project, a bill, or a grandchild's homework. You'll recognize the species of stall on sight now. Don't explain AI to them — Frank's rule. Just say "bring it over, I know a trick," and run one move from this book on their actual problem, at their actual table.
Ten chapters ago someone did the equivalent for you (it was Marlene, and it was a question: "well, what did you say to it?"). The tradition is now yours. It's the one part of the book that only works if it's given away.
The maintenance kit
Three prompts for the years after the book, starting with the one that keeps the book itself from aging:
1. The update
I learned to use AI from a plain-English book written in 2026 — briefings, standing conversations, interview mode, verification for anything with stakes. What has meaningfully changed since then that a practical home user like me should actually know? Skip the industry news; just what changes how I'd do things. Plain English.
Run it once a year, or whenever a grandchild announces everything's different now. The answer is usually shorter than they think.
2. The re-brief
For refreshing any standing conversation that's grown long in the tooth
Summarize everything important you know about my [garden / paperwork system / travel file] from this conversation — a briefing I can paste into a fresh chat.
Take the cutting; replant. Works forever.
3. The handoff
For the person at your table
I'm showing a friend how this works for the first time. They're skeptical, which we consider a feature. Here's their situation: [their pile, their project]. Ask them your questions one at a time — I'll type their answers — then give them one plain, useful result that would make a skeptic raise an eyebrow. No cheerleading. They'll be checking your work.
They'll be checking your work. Four words that summarize the entire book, and the correct last thing to say to any machine — or, for that matter, to any author. Check mine. It's how this whole thing is supposed to work.
Works in ChatGPT, Claude, or any of their cousins.