Failing Forward - Why I Paused Automation to Launch Faster: Volume 4
My vision was clear → a fully automated tech stack that operates like a one-button newsroom. One Notion database feeding three of the four sections of Neural Gains Weekly: ideas generated, polished content created, social media posts constructed. Hit a button, and it’s done. Low cost, minimal friction, and I’m still the final editor. I thought this would be achievable and easy to execute, knowing I wasn’t going to push back the launch date of 9/30/2025. Was I naive? Did I overestimate the complexity? Did social media influence my decision-making? The answer is yes, this ‘simple’ automation build became a roadblock in creating Volume 1 by the 30th. I learned several lessons along the way that will help you build with AI.
Lesson 1 - Learning new tools takes time
I had zero experience with Notion and frankly, hadn’t researched thoroughly to understand the capabilities on this platform. I was swayed by social media hype and assumed it would be easy to build content with one click. I spent a few hours building a Notion template and trying to automatically create content. The same template behaved differently across sections. Minor changes in Notion fields broke the pipeline. Rich text turned messy. I spent hours “troubleshooting the seemingly easy parts”. The more I pushed, the more I realized the problem wasn’t the platform or formatting— it was knowledge. I needed to spend time learning and experimenting with Notion before deploying, especially given the time constraints. Too much complexity without the right knowledge base delayed my progress, which ultimately led to the realization that learning AI tools takes time and failure is part of the process.
Takeaway: Don’t automate what you haven’t learned yet. Learn the tool first, then automate the parts you truly understand.
Lesson 2: Automation is a multiplier — after the baseline is stable
I treated automation as a shortcut and a time-saver. Balancing family, a W2 career, real estate ventures, health goals, and social activities requires a strong focus on time management. The appeal of automation, especially with available AI tools, is a ‘no-brainer’ for a project like this, one requiring time, energy, and commitment to deliver on a weekly basis. I quickly learned that automation is the end state, not the beginning. I needed to build the skills and knowledge to successfully execute a complex (at least for me) automation process aligning to my vision. My focus shifted to building out a content roadmap and creating useful and engaging content. This will ensure my automation roadmap helps me accelerate progress without disrupting the momentum I have built so far.
Takeaway: Automation speeds up what already works. Build the rhythm first; automate to amplify it—not replace it.
Lesson 3: Failure leads to new ideas
The great thing about AI is the speed at which new products are released. I started the initial automation part of the project back in early August and there have been dozens of changes to the AI landscape that will benefit me during round 2 of the automation build out. My initial failures in this space were disappointing, but there is always a silver lining. I have new ideas to explore and developed a better understanding of how to bring my vision closer to reality. It’s exciting to explore new AI platforms knowing I will be able to share my journey to help others. I will continue to share updates once I build a timeline and roadmap. Here is what I am researching at this moment to help on this journey:
- Building a Notion learning plan with Google Gemini ‘Learn’ mode
- ChatGPT connectors, specifically GitHub and Notion
- Ghost API capabilities and limitations
- Zapier and n8n comparison
- Claude Skills platform
Automation didn’t launch this newsletter—discipline did. I’m sharing learnings in real time, and I haven’t mastered any of this yet. Three things keep me moving: learn the tool before automating it, build a stable weekly rhythm, and treat failures as scouting reports for the next experiment. I’m keeping costs low and myself in the editor’s chair while I test small, human-in-the-loop wins. Next week I’ll share another stumble—my early image and video-generation attempts—and how I’m working to improve.
Goals & Milestones:
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