Automation used to mean hiring a developer or wrestling with complicated tools. AI has changed that — you can now automate real chunks of your workflow with plain-language instructions. Here’s how to find what’s worth automating and how to start.
Find your repeat tasks
Before automating anything, track what you do repeatedly for a week. Look for tasks that are: predictable (same steps every time), frequent (daily or weekly), and low-judgment (you’re not making a hard creative call each time). These are your best automation candidates.
Start with connector-based automation
Tools that connect your apps together (email, calendar, spreadsheets, project boards) with AI in the middle are the easiest entry point. A common first automation: new form submission → AI drafts a personalized reply → drops into your inbox as a draft for you to review and send.
Keep a human checkpoint at first
Don’t let your first automations run fully unsupervised. Build them to draft, summarize, or flag — and have a human approve before anything goes out. Once you trust the output after a few weeks, you can loosen the leash.
Three workflows worth automating first
- Meeting notes → automatic summary and action items sent to your team
- Inbound leads or inquiries → AI drafts a first-response reply for review
- Weekly reporting → AI pulls key numbers and drafts the summary for you to check
Pick one, get it working reliably, then move to the next. Automation compounds — a handful of small wins adds up to hours back every week.