Transform Your Week: Try Agentic AI To Save Time - No PhD Needed
Practical ideas you can try today - whether you code, create, or just want to make your life easier
Hello AgentBuilders,
What if next week you let AI do the busywork? I have learnt people are trying to figure out how to save time and make their work easier with AI. And you know what, there is no better way of learning something in the process of solving your own problems. Afterall, so many people built startups trying to solve their own problems.
This article is all about seeing what Agentic AI can do for you, whether you code for a living or simply want to work smarter, not harder.
I am laying out few clear examples, actionable tips, and realistic “try-this-at-home” challenges that you can attempt, right now. Don’t limit your imagination though, follow this guidance and be creative to find that painful problem you want to solve.
I’d love your input! 🙏
To make my content more valuable for everyone, I’m trying to find the right balance.
Please tell me what kind of content are you interested in?
“I’m Not an Expert - Can I Still Benefit?” (Yes, Immediately.)
Let me tell you about two people I spoke with recently:
Jamie runs marketing but has zero coding background. She used a plug-and-play AI spreadsheet summarizer to scan a month’s worth of leads and generate key insights - no formulas, no sweat.
I like this video that guides how to use ChatGPT with Excel. You should learn this and use the knowledge for your own analyses.
Saumya, a senior developer and co-founder, built a workflow with an AI agent that triaged customer support emails, flagged urgent issues, and even drafted polite replies. It saved him two hours every morning. Given that Saumya is building an early stage startup, with no team in place, this has been a game changer for him.
Looking for inspiration? Check this video from Nate explaining how you can build this using n8n:
Use a template
You can also use read-to-go n8n templates for building your workflow. No need to build from a blank canvas. Check this out: Personalized Email Automation using Google Docs, Pinecone, GPT-4o and Gmail
You don’t have to build a robot army. Start with one “delegate-able” task.
Quickstart for Everyone:
Try Agentic AI in 10 Minutes (or Less)
1. Use ChatGPT or Claude for a Multi-Step Task
Whether you’re planning a trip, summarizing a meeting, or comparing products:
Prompt example:
“Act as an intelligent assistant. Here’s my email inbox: [copy-paste 3 emails]. Summarize each, mark any urgent action, and draft quick replies.”Note: Don’t paste emails with sensitive data. Be responsible and protect your customer data. If you are in a job, find the right Generative AI tool for internal use, that your company has provided clearance for. In any case, don’t paste sensitive data in there.
Technical twist:
“Here’s a code snippet/error message/project outline—analyze root cause, suggest fixes, and generate documentation or a test case.”
Tip: Instead of vague prompts, write out each step you’d want done. Agents now understand and execute sequences, not just single asks.
2. Automate a Spreadsheet Task (No Coding)
Try uploading a messy CSV or Excel into an AI Assistant (like ChatGPT, Claude, Google Gemini, or the one your employer has allowed for use) and prompt:
“Summarize sales trends by region and highlight errors or missing values.”
Use Google Sheets' new “Help Me Organize” feature (found in many accounts) to instantly generate formulas, sort data, or build a report with just a sentence.
3. Everyone’s Secret Weapon: AI for Personal To-Do Lists and Task Summaries
Tired of endless to-do lists, notes scattered across apps, or forgetting what you promised to do in yesterday’s meeting? Agentic AI now makes personal task management smarter, and easier for everyone, regardless of job or tech level.
Try This:
Copy-paste your scattered tasks, notes, or calendar items (from email, sticky notes, or your favorite app) into ChatGPT, Claude, or a similar tool.
Ask it:
“Here’s everything on my plate this week. Group related tasks, set priorities, and give me a simplified action plan for today.”
Extra tip: You can even ask the AI to schedule the tasks - “Break this into a Monday - Friday calendar, with time estimates.”
Result: Less overwhelm, more results. See how much headspace you get back after your first AI-powered planning session.
4. Developer? Try Building a Mini-Agent
Platforms like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Amazon Bedrock have no/low-code agent builders - use sample projects (search their docs for “getting started with agents”) to automate things like:
Bug report triage
Data pipeline checks
Automatic update summaries sent to Slack
Personally, I have been using Strand Agents. It is developer-freindly, open-source, and allows you to use free models.
👉 Check it out here: https://strandsagents.com/latest/documentation/docs/
👉 Here is a LinkedIn carousel I made showing how to build agents with Strands Agents SDK. Check it out.
Your “Learn and Try” Challenge
Pick 1 daily task you’d rather not do.
Write out each step.
Paste this into ChatGPT, Claude, or the AI tool you have access to.
See what happens.
Tweak and try again. Every prompt is a practice rep.
If you’re technical, hunt through quickstart guides for “agent builders.”
👉 Here is a GitHub repo - AI Agent for Beginners, start here.
Big Takeaway: Everyone Can Start… and Improve Fast
Agentic AI is no longer out of reach, it’s right in your browser, ready to amplify what you do. The trick isn’t brilliance or bravado; it’s curiosity and a willingness to hand off a little control.
What Will You Try First?
I want to hear your story:
What simple agentic task did you try?
Did it save you time? Surprise you? Hit a wall?
Anything confusing or cool in your workflow now?
Reply to this newsletter and let me know. Every week, I’ll feature a few of your tips or stumbling blocks, the best way for us all to learn, together.
Let’s make AI useful for real work, right now.
Thanks,
Sandipan.
AgentBuild Community