The ladder
Four rungs, from your first prompt to a company of your own.
You don’t need to know how AI works inside. You need to know what to do next. Find the rung you’re on, then take the next step; every rung has its own free series.
- Rung 1Learn AIYou’re here ifyou have tried AI a few times, but it isn't part of your week yet.Next stepUse it on one real task every working day for two weeks — and check every answer.The series: AI training
- Rung 2Use AI at workYou’re here ifAI saves you time every week, at work or in your studies.Next stepTurn the time saved into proof: a portfolio piece, a new role, a raise or a first client.The series: The AI Workweek
- Rung 3Earn with AIYou’re here ifwhat you can do with AI has earned you money: a job, a promotion, a raise or a paying client.Next stepPackage what you do into a service or a product that doesn't need you for every step.The series: AI-proof your career
- Rung 4Build with AIYou’re here ifyou run a business, alone or with a few people, where AI agents do real work every day.Next stepPublish your numbers, and help someone on the first rung start climbing.The series: The one-person AI company
Method
How to climb
- 1Find your rung.Read the four “you’re here if” lines and pick the highest one that is true today. When in doubt, the lower one.
- 2Do the next step, not every step.Each rung names one next step. Give it two weeks before you read about the rung above.
- 3Check the work.AI makes confident mistakes. Check every answer that matters before you use it, send it or sell it.
- 4Keep proof.Save what you made: the before and after, the hours saved, the first client. Proof is what gets you hired or paid.
- 5Climb in public, if you can.Share what worked. Someone one rung below you needs exactly that.
Every post, by rung
Where to start on yours
Learn AI3
Use AI at work1
Earn with AI1
Build with AI1
Said plainly
What the ladder won’t do
- AI doesn't climb for you.
- Every rung takes practice. Tools change every few months; the habit of trying, checking and shipping is what lasts.
- Nothing here is a promise of income.
- Real cases show what is possible, not what is guaranteed. Where a post shows numbers, they are real and dated.
- Check everything.
- AI makes confident mistakes. Every playbook includes the step where you check the work.
- Keep private things private.
- Don't paste into an AI tool anything you wouldn't put in an email to a stranger: customer data, passwords, health records.
- Not every job changes at the same speed.
- AI reshapes some work faster than other work. A claim about jobs on this site always cites its source.
A structured start
RDMI AI Workforce
For the first two rungs as a course: free, job-focused AI training: build real work with AI and finish with a portfolio and a verifiable certificate. Run by RDMI, the company I run.
Start the free trainingVersions
- v1 · First published: four rungs, how to tell where you stand, and the next step on each.
This page is revised in place. Every earlier version stays listed here.