Your First Employee is a Machine
Your First Employee Is a Machine cover
Tenfold: The AI Book

Your First Employee Is a Machine

Ten levels to hiring, training and trusting AI

A ten-level, no-hype guide that takes anyone who already uses AI from getting okay answers to having AI research, teach, build and run work for them under their own rules.

$24.99Paperback

Printed to order and shipped within a few business days.

About the book

You already use AI. You ask it questions and get answers that sound confident and aren't quite right, or so general you learn nothing. Meanwhile everyone keeps talking about AI that does the work for you, and nobody explains how to get it.

This book does. It takes you up ten levels, one chapter at a time, from understanding what's on the other side of the screen to building assistants, agents and automations that run under your rules while you do something else.

Along the way you'll learn the biggest mistake beginners make, a five-part formula for prompts that work every time, three layers of protection against made-up facts, how to turn AI into a personal professor that knows exactly where you get stuck, and how to hand it your email, your research and your busywork without handing it your judgment.

Every chapter includes a worked example, a full sample conversation, prompts to steal, a practice drill and a checklist so you know when you're ready to move up. No hype, no jargon, and every statistic traced to a source you can check.

The ten levels

  1. 1. Understand AIWhat's really on the other side of the screen, and why it matters now.
  2. 2. Stop talking to AI like a personThe mistake almost every beginner makes, and the fix.
  3. 3. Prompt craftThe five-part Assistant Brief that works every time.
  4. 4. Verify and calibrateThree layers of protection against made-up facts.
  5. 5. Master contextTurn AI into a personal professor that knows where you get stuck.
  6. 6. Research and analysisTwenty sources, cross-checked, before you trust a number.
  7. 7. Create across mediaGuides, apps and products from your own ideas.
  8. 8. Reusable assistantsBuild it once, use it every week.
  9. 9. Agents and toolsAI that takes actions, not just answers.
  10. 10. Automate and buildWork that runs on a schedule while you do something else.

Plus a bonus chapter on letting AI write your prompts, a chapter on staying ahead, a prompt library, a 30-day challenge and a plain-language glossary.

Who it's for

Anyone who already uses AI and wants more from it: students, small business owners, professionals and the simply curious. No technical background needed. If you can type a question, you can start at Level 1.

Questions

What format is it?
A 6 x 9 inch paperback, 165 pages, printed and shipped to order.
How long does shipping take?
Each copy is printed when you order it. Most orders print in 3 to 5 business days, then ship.

License terms

Each copy is sold for the personal use of the buyer. You may read it, mark it up and lend the paperback as you would any book.

Digital copies are stamped with the buyer's name. They may not be copied, shared, resold, posted online or used to train AI systems. Quoting short passages with credit is welcome.

Prompts and templates in the book may be used freely in your own work.