Four years ago today, on 6 October 2022, I made my first AI image. Midjourney, on Discord, in a chat full of strangers. ChatGPT launched 55 days later.
For a long time I thought the images were the point. They weren't.
The lesson: stop waiting for someone else to make it for you.
What that looks like in practice:
- 1When you catch yourself writing a brief for someone else, make a rough version yourself first.
- 2Keep what you made, even if it's ugly. It's the best brief you will ever write.
- 3Only hand it over once you know exactly what good looks like.
Since then I've built 41 apps without being a developer, and an agent makes a daily promo animation before anyone is at their desk.
What did you start four years ago that you'd do again?
Stefaan Maene
Operator and builder. Runs a €100M+ multi-brand business across three regulated markets. Builds his own tooling.
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