Lesson · Use Claude to make yourself valuable0/18checkpoints
A Save 5 Hours lesson · based on KJ Rainey
Claude multiplies you. It can't replace you.
KJ Rainey walked away from $50,000 a month selling courses so he could build things instead. On The Calum Johnson Show he shows how he uses Claude to find, understand, do, automate and build, with his real prompts. Six scenes, 18 checkpoints, a library of every prompt from the episode, and at the end a starter kit built from your own answers.
Source The Calum Johnson ShowGuest KJ RaineyVideo 1:35:39Lesson about 45 minCheckpoints 18Prompts 12
00Before you start · The map
Use AI to make yourself valuable.
KJ's whole method fits on one whiteboard: first learn (find the information, then really understand it), then do (troubleshoot, automate the small stuff, build your own tools). Each move below is one scene. The prompts he shows in each one are waiting in the prompt library, ready to copy.
1FindAsk Claude for the map: which skills matter, ranked, plus the best books, videos and tools.Scene 2
2UnderstandExplain it back until it pokes no more holes. "Once you get in the loop, your life will never be the same."Scene 3
3DoTroubleshoot anything with a screenshot. Hand Claude the math, keep the art.Scene 4
4AutomateThe small repeatable stuff first, then whole workflows you teach once.Scene 5
5BuildFour questions on paper, one clear prompt in Cowork, fixes in one batch.Scene 6
Scene 1 comes first because KJ insists on it: none of this works if you treat Claude as a way to stop thinking.
01Scene 01 · Mindset · The biggest mistake
Don't use Claude like a dingbat.
Claude is code that can reason, and it sounds confident. Treat confidence as truth and it will happily take you on a wild goose chase. The start decides everything: your first prompt and your own clarity turn the same tool into a diamond or a mess. And remember: getting an output has never been easier, but an output is not an effective output.
An output and an effective output are two wildly different things.
A human stays in the loop. Claude never has your full context. Start a little off, and 20 minutes later it looks nothing like what you wanted.
You can't outbuild your understanding. AI won't make you a good YouTuber. If you already are one, it helps you make better and more videos.
Work smarter, not less. Stop seeing AI as a way to work less. Use it to work on more important things.
The 200 IQ mentor. After Naval: a mentor who knows everything, has zero ego, works 24/7 and teaches at your pace. Learning is the highest value use.
Watch the shiny trap. Graphs, a voice assistant like Jarvis, and a week with nothing changed. He has been there too.
30×
The lightbulb moment. KJ built three skills for his wife: Claude asks what she wants, lists her problems and nudges her, kindly, to act. She got an Instagram plan for her custom banners, bought a tripod and has sold about 30 banners at around $50 each. A goal-oriented Claude, handed to someone who never makes time to think it through.
Try it
Dingbat or valuable?
Sort each use of AI. Does it make you more valuable, or does it only look busy?
Checkpoint 1
Pass all three to unlock scene 2.
Scenario
Claude hands you a long, confident plan for your business in 30 seconds. It sounds great. What does KJ say to do?
Scenario
Which sentence matches KJ's core rule?
Do it
Sort all six uses correctly in Dingbat or valuable.
Use Check my sort above. This checkpoint ticks itself.
Scene 2 is locked
Pass the three checkpoints of scene 1 to unlock it.
There are a million good things to do and usually one right thing. KJ's master prompt asks Claude to interview him, list every skill the goal needs and rank them by importance, then make a plan. He says that one ranked list would have saved him three years. Then he keeps going in the same chat: micro skills, principles, the best sources, tools, a 30-day plan.
Trajectory matters so much more than speed.
Be nice to Claude. His prompt literally says "plz" and "pretty please".
The ranked list. For his YouTube goal: 1 picking ideas people search for and click on, 2 titles and thumbnails, 3 teaching clearly on camera.
The million-dollar bullet. In the micro skills: look up what people already search for. He made videos for 5 years before he learned what a keyword is.
Principles, not tactics. Don't hunt for tactics like a red arrow on a thumbnail. Ask why it worked.
Learn from humans. AI finds the right human content: books, videos, podcasts from people with real judgment.
A $4,000 course in 5 minutes. The chain ends with tools for skill 1 and a 30-day action plan.
Try it
Your master prompt
Type your goal. The prompt fills itself in. Copy it into Claude and answer its interview questions.
Then, in the same chat, one after the other:
For the top 3 skills, break each one down into the micro skills I should know, in order of their importance.
What fundamental principles are at play in those skills? And recommend, or tell me how to find, the best books, YouTube videos and podcasts on those principles.
Can you recommend the best tools (the actual "how") I could use to accomplish skill #1? Preferably free or cheapest to start with.
Turn everything above into a 30-day action plan: which skills to focus on, where my hours go each week, and the three rules I should follow.
Follow-ups 1 to 3 are KJ's on-screen wording, cleaned up. Number 4 is ours: he shows the 30-day plan, not the prompt.
Checkpoint 2
Pass all three to unlock scene 3.
Scenario
You want to grow on LinkedIn. Before asking Claude for 50 post ideas, what would KJ do first?
Scenario
Claude has ranked your top skills. Which follow-up gets you to "what do I do tomorrow?"
Do it
Write your own goal into the master prompt (at least four words).
Use Your master prompt above. This checkpoint ticks itself.
Scene 3 is locked
Pass the three checkpoints of scene 2 to unlock it.
Finding is step one. Now you pick one tool and really learn it. KJ's prompt for learning GitHub asks for plain steps, analogies from his own world (Premiere, sports, Call of Duty), an overview of every concept, action steps, and then the key line: "I'll reiterate back to you in my own words until you think I have a good understanding."
Learning is hard, even with AI.
Don't nod along. AI is so fast you will feel overwhelmed and want to say "got it". Don't. Ask what a repository even is.
Do the action steps. Doing it once is when it stops being scary.
Screenshot what broke. No waiting for a teacher to grade 100 homeworks: paste the screenshot and ask what you did wrong.
Ask again, differently. Copy the confusing part of the answer and ask for it another way.
Spend 1,000 hours with it. Like a new employee, you learn its strengths, limits and quirks, then it becomes a partner.
His first try? He connected Claude to his whiteboard app, asked for 100 thumbnails and burned his usage in 5 minutes. It takes time.
Try it
Your learn-any-tool prompt
Three blanks. The analogy world is the secret: pick something you know inside out.
Flip it
Weak follow-up, strong follow-up
Tap a card to see what KJ would type instead.
Checkpoint 3
Pass all three to unlock scene 4.
Scenario
Claude explains a new tool in 10 quick steps and you are lost at step 3. What now?
Scenario
Why does KJ ask Claude for analogies from video games, sports and Premiere?
Do it
Fill in your goal, your tool and your analogy world.
Use Your learn-any-tool prompt above. This checkpoint ticks itself.
Scene 4 is locked
Pass the three checkpoints of scene 3 to unlock it.
Doing starts with technical troubleshooting: the camera settings, the error message, the button you can't find. That used to be 15 minutes on Reddit and an outdated YouTube video; now it's a screenshot. Then KJ's slider: the closer a task is to math (one right answer), the better Claude is. The closer to art (taste, no right answer), the worse.
Don't look at the process, look at the output.
The troubleshoot prompt. "I'm trying to do X, but Y. This is what's happening. Please help." Plus a screenshot.
Too new for Claude? If the answer seems outdated, tell it to search the web.
The real value is opportunity cost. Ten hours of random fixing become ten hours making the thing.
Why math wins. 2 + 2 has one right answer, so AI can be trained on it. A song or a painting has none.
Claude is useful for: pattern recognition, research, summarizing, searching and extracting, converting and repurposing, sorting big volume, repeating tasks accurately, rough drafts of basic creative tasks, basic coding.
Don't ask too big. "Is Claude good at thumbnails?" is the wrong question. Break the process into steps and put each one on the slider.
Don't be a process monkey. Ignore how cool a process looks. Ask what outcome it really produces.
Try it
Put the thumbnail process on the slider
KJ's own example. Eight steps of making a thumbnail. Which ones go to Claude (math), which ones stay with you (art)?
Keep it
Your troubleshoot prompt
Write down something that's annoying you right now. You'll find this prompt again in your starter kit.
Checkpoint 4
Pass all three to unlock scene 5.
Scenario
A friend asks: "Is Claude good at thumbnails?" What is KJ's answer?
Scenario
A new app shows an error, and Claude seems not to know the app. Which prompt works best?
Do it
Place all eight thumbnail steps on the right side of the slider.
Use Check my sort above. This checkpoint ticks itself.
Scene 5 is locked
Pass the three checkpoints of scene 4 to unlock it.
05Scene 05 · Automate · The small repeatable stuff
Automate the small stuff. Do more of what matters.
Past learning, the biggest value is opportunity cost: automate the small repeatable stuff so you can do more of what you're actually good at. KJ's team first lists the one to three skills that really move their goal. Everything outside those gets removed by any leverage available, and for someone without a big budget, AI is the best leverage there is.
It's like having an army of a thousand VAs that have 200 IQ.
Level 1 · one judgment
The inbox report. His agent checks his Instagram DMs every day and reports only what matters: someone asking for one-on-one help, a mentorship request, a feature idea for his app, a collaboration offer. He hasn't opened Instagram in months.
Setup time: about 3 seconds. He runs the same thing for email. Think of it as a smart little brother with no street smarts.
Level 2 · a whole workflow
The YouTube packaging report. One prompt about his video idea returns keyword demand, competition, thumbnail inspiration from inside and outside his niche, title ideas and tags to copy.
About the 10th version of this skill. "You teach Claude, you give examples, you test things." Then it does it every time.
Don't hire a robot to paint if you love painting. Automate what you don't want to do, not the thing you're there for.
The whiteboard question. What are the one to three things that drive the goal? Everything else: how do we get rid of it?
Simple rules make it safe. "If they don't have a bunch of followers and ask for a brand deal, don't tell me."
Not sexy, really valuable. His goal: his whole phone becomes one agent that pings him only when something matters.
Try it
Audit your week
Write three tasks you repeat every week. How much of your judgment does each one need? You get the level and a starter prompt.
Checkpoint 5
Pass all three to unlock scene 6.
Scenario
Which of these is a Level 1 automation (one simple judgment)?
Scenario
KJ's packaging report skill is on about its 10th version. Why so many?
Do it
Audit three of your weekly tasks and rate the judgment each one needs.
Use Audit your week above. This checkpoint ticks itself.
Scene 6 is locked
Pass the three checkpoints of scene 5 to unlock it.
06Scene 06 · Build · Your first tool in 10 minutes
Think for 30 minutes. Build in 10.
KJ's framework: find a small thing in your life that's annoying, or something you wish existed. Then, before you touch Claude, write clearly about four questions. That's the part everyone skims, and it's where the leverage is. He walks away to a room of cork boards, fills cards like a madman, types it up and sends it. Then he uses the tool every day and fixes what annoys him.
Your only bottleneck is your ideas.
1Why am I building this thing?If you had a magic wand, what would happen?
2What's wrong with the current way of doing it?The pain is your feature list.
3What's the exact outcome, process, features and functionality I want?"Make it look kind of like YouTube" is enough. No need to talk code.
4Optional: how will I get the data this tool needs?Which API, connector or browser? "The $10,000 question." Research it in a separate chat.
Cowork, not Chat. Chat is just the brain, it can only talk. Cowork can read and write files on your computer and connect to other software, so it writes the HTML file that is your tool.
Use the best model. No prompt hack beats the best model.
An API is a menu. YouTube offers a menu (search 100 videos, filter by date), and Claude orders from it for you.
Connectors are "APIs for noobs". Easier, but limited: the Drive connector can search, read and upload, not edit. Ask Claude what each one can do.
Browser and computer use. Anything a human can click, Claude can too. Slower, so use it for the niche stuff no API covers.
Tell Claude why. When it knows the purpose (research for a team), it fills gaps on its own, like adding an export for the team.
The live build: a YouTube research tool
KJ sends his starting prompt (verbatim in the prompt library) to Cowork live. Claude asks a few basic questions, walks him through getting a YouTube API key, and returns an HTML file. He opens it in Chrome: 200 videos for "Claude Cowork", sortable by outlier score. Two problems show up straight away: Shorts slip through, and some videos are not in English.
1 · Batch every fixLook for every change you can think of, then send them in one prompt. Less back and forth, better results.
2 · Talk it in, then read itHe dictates with a voice app that removes the "ums", then reads it over: one misheard word can throw off a whole prompt.
3 · Show, don't describeScreenshot it, circle the problem, and send a reference: "here's YouTube, the exact ratio of video to card". AI is very good at copying.
His fix list, all in one go: no videos under 2 minutes, a focus toggle with a blue outline for the team, a "focused only" filter, a hide button, white view counts, outliers over 5x in purple. Then the Outlier Board: a password-protected team site on Vercel, built the same day.
Watch your keys. KJ leaked his API key on camera twice in this episode. An API key is like a house key for your account: keep it out of anything you share, screenshot or send to your team.
Try it
Your build brief
Answer the four questions. The meter shows how clear your brief is. Then copy the prompt into Cowork.
Rough ideaFill the four questionsClear brief
Checkpoint 6
Pass all three to unlock your starter kit.
Scenario
You want to build a small tool for yourself. Chat or Cowork?
Scenario
Your Google Drive connector can search and read, but Claude says it cannot edit your file. What is going on?
Do it
Write a clear build brief: why, what's wrong, and at least two features.
Use Your build brief until the meter reads clear. This checkpoint ticks itself.
Your starter kit is locked
Pass all 18 checkpoints to unlock it. It is built from what you wrote in the scenes.
1You are the valueClaude multiplies what you understand.
2FindInterview me, rank the skills, plan.
3UnderstandAnalogies, action, explain it back.
4DoScreenshot it. Math to Claude, art to you.
5AutomateLevel 1 in seconds, Level 2 taught.
6BuildFour questions, one prompt, one batch.
Your kit
Built from your answers
Every prompt below uses what you typed in the scenes. Empty fields show an example in grey; go back and fill them to make it yours.
Do this tonight
KJ's first step
Open Claude and switch it to Cowork. Set a timer for 30 seconds and think of one small thing it could build for you. Tell it, even in one sentence. Then watch. "All I have to do is get you to start."
And then the snowball: you use it, you fix it, friends ask for it, maybe one day it's a paid app.
Save 5 Hours add-on · not in the video
One prompt a dayFor one week, use one prompt from the library every day on a real task. That's how the 1,000 hours start.
Keep a fix listUse your tool daily and write down every annoyance. Send them to Claude in one batch on Friday.
Sort before you startBefore any new task, ask: math or art? Hand over the math without guilt.
☰Always open · No checkpoints needed
The prompt library.
Every prompt from the episode in one place. Each card has KJ's version (exactly as shown on screen, typos included), a fill-in template, and a Save 5 Hours example for a small business. Tap the time chip to see the moment in the video.
You have a goal and no map. Start every new skill here.
i wanna learn how to start and grow a youtube channel to 100k subscribers.
1. plz interview me to get a better idea of where i'm starting from and clarifying my goal in detail
2. then can you pretty please explain to me all the skills i will probably need to learn to accomplish this, then can you rank them in order of importance (when it comes to reaching the clarified goal)
3. then can you help me get started deciding what to work, making a plan, and helping me execute it
I want to learn how to [YOUR GOAL].
1. Please interview me to get a better idea of where I'm starting from, and clarify my goal in detail.
2. Then explain all the skills I will probably need to learn to accomplish this, and rank them in order of importance for reaching the clarified goal.
3. Then help me get started: decide what to work on, make a plan, and help me execute it.
I want to learn how to sell AI automation projects to Swiss small businesses with 5 to 50 staff.
1. Please interview me to get a better idea of where I'm starting from, and clarify my goal in detail.
2. Then explain all the skills I will probably need to learn to accomplish this, and rank them in order of importance for reaching the clarified goal.
3. Then help me get started: decide what to work on, make a plan, and help me execute it.
Shown on screen · KJ's exact words, typos includedSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
02
Break it into micro skills
Same chat, right after the ranked list.
for the top 3 skills, can break each one of those down into the micro skills i should know in order of their importance
For the top 3 skills, break each one down into the micro skills I should know, in order of their importance.
For the top 3 skills, break each one down into the micro skills I should know, in order of their importance. I have about 5 hours a week for this.
Shown on screen · KJ's exact words, typos includedSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
03
Principles and the best sources
Same chat. Find the humans who have done it.
can you tell me what fundamental principles are at play in those skills, and recommend/tell me how to find the best books, youtube videos, podcasts on learning those principles?
What fundamental principles are at play in those skills? And recommend, or tell me how to find, the best books, YouTube videos and podcasts on those principles.
What fundamental principles are at play in those skills? And recommend, or tell me how to find, the best books, YouTube videos and podcasts on those principles, ideally ones aimed at small business owners in Europe.
Shown on screen · KJ's exact words, typos includedSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
04
The best tools for skill #1
Same chat. Information is one part, tools are the other.
can you recommend the best tools (the actual "how") i could use to accomplish skill #1? preferably free or cheapest to start with
Can you recommend the best tools (the actual "how") I could use to accomplish skill #1? Preferably free or cheapest to start with.
Can you recommend the best tools (the actual "how") I could use to accomplish skill #1? Preferably free or cheapest to start with, and usable in German and English.
Shown on screen · KJ's exact words, typos includedSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
05
Your 30-day action plan
Same chat, to close the loop. KJ shows the result at 34:11; the wording below is ours.
Turn everything above into a 30-day action plan: which skills to focus on, where my hours go each week, and the three rules I should follow.
Turn everything above into a 30-day action plan for someone with 5 hours a week: which skills to focus on, where the hours go each week, and the three rules I should follow.
Save 5 Hours wording · not in the videoSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
06
Learn any new tool
You picked a tool and want to really understand it.
I'm building a cool software tool for the first time and I want to learn how to use github to host this application online and make changes to it and saves.
I'm completely new to this world of software engineering to I want you to explain everything step by step to me very simply.
Also feel free to use analogies from domains that I do understand pretty well (content creation, editing softwares like adobe premiere or photoshop, or sports, video games like runescape, halo, call of duty, csgo2)
I want you to give me an overview of every concept I'll need to understand to use github with AI effectively to build and launch my projects
Then I want you to walk me through each concept step by step with analogies and visuals, and action steps as needed. (make sure to prioritize action when possible because I learn best by doing)
Then I'll reiterate back to you in my own words what I've learned until you think I have a good understanding of that concept
My goal: [WHAT YOU ARE BUILDING OR DOING]. I want to learn how to use [TOOL] to do it.
I'm completely new to this, so explain everything step by step, very simply.
Feel free to use analogies from domains I understand well: [YOUR WORLD, E.G. COOKING, FOOTBALL, A GAME].
Give me an overview of every concept I'll need to understand to use [TOOL] effectively for my goal.
Then walk me through each concept step by step with analogies, visuals and action steps. Prioritize action, because I learn best by doing.
Then I'll explain back to you in my own words what I've learned, until you think I have a good understanding of that concept.
My goal: publish my client dashboards online. I want to learn how to use Cloudflare to do it.
I'm completely new to this, so explain everything step by step, very simply.
Feel free to use analogies from domains I understand well: running a restaurant, kitchen and dining room, and project management.
Give me an overview of every concept I'll need to understand to use Cloudflare effectively for my goal.
Then walk me through each concept step by step with analogies, visuals and action steps. Prioritize action, because I learn best by doing.
Then I'll explain back to you in my own words what I've learned, until you think I have a good understanding of that concept.
Shown on screen · KJ's exact words, typos includedSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
07
Explain it another way
You are lost on one part of an answer.
"[PASTE THE PART YOU DON'T GET]"
Can you explain this further, or in a different way? Then let me explain it back to you.
"A Worker runs at the edge, close to the user."
Can you explain this further, or in a different way? Then let me explain it back to you.
Said out loud · KJ's prompt in our clean wordingSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
08
Troubleshoot anything
You are stuck on a setting, an error, a button you cannot find.
I'm trying to do [WHAT YOU WANT], but [WHAT GOES WRONG]. This is what's happening: [SCREENSHOT]. Please help.
If this is new or your answer seems outdated, search the web for current info.
I'm trying to publish my video page, but the video won't play on my iPhone. This is what's happening: [screenshot of the black player]. Please help.
If this is new or your answer seems outdated, search the web for current info.
Said out loud · KJ's prompt in our clean wordingSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
09
Level 1 automation: the inbox report
One simple judgment, repeated every day.
Check my [INBOX] every day. Report back with anything interesting: [WHAT COUNTS]. Skip [WHAT TO IGNORE].
Check my email inbox every morning. Report back with anything interesting: client requests, offers that need an answer, invoices due this week. Skip newsletters and cold sales pitches.
Said out loud · KJ's prompt in our clean wordingSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
10
Build a tool: the starting prompt
After answering the 4 questions on paper.
I want to build a tool that I can view almost every youtube video possible (in english) for a specific search term.
I'm building this because I want to do research on competing videos before I make a video around that search term.
Currently I have to use youtube or other tools but I cant see EVERY video, and I can't see them clearly laid out.
Features:
- I want to search for a keyword/phrase then be able to see every video result default ranked by views.
- I want the video cards to look similiar to how they'd appear on youtube.
- I also wanna be able to filter to only show videos that have come out recently.
- I also wanna be able to view by outlier score (how many views to subs ratio)
We should probably just use the youtube api from google, unless you find any api that you think would be better.
I want to build a tool that [WHAT IT DOES].
I'm building this because [WHY: THE MAGIC WAND].
Currently I [THE CURRENT WAY], but [WHAT IS WRONG WITH IT].
Features:
- [FEATURE 1]
- [FEATURE 2]
- [FEATURE 3]
For the data, we should probably use [API / CONNECTOR / BROWSER], unless you find something you think would be better.
I want to build a tool where I paste a YouTube link and get a one-page lesson: chapters, the key prompts, and a short quiz.
I'm building this because clients ask me what a long video says, and they won't watch 90 minutes.
Currently I watch the whole video and take notes by hand, which takes me half a day per video.
Features:
- Paste a link, get chapters with timestamps that jump into the video.
- Pull every prompt that is shown or said, ready to copy.
- Three quiz questions per chapter.
- Looks like a clean, branded one-page website.
For the data, we should probably use the video's captions, unless you find something you think would be better.
Shown on screen · KJ's exact words, typos includedSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
11
Fix it in one batch
Your first version works but has 5 annoying things.
Here's everything I want changed in one go:
1. [FIX 1]
2. [FIX 2]
3. [NEW FEATURE]
4. [LOOK AND FEEL: e.g. make the numbers white]
5. [RULE: e.g. color anything over 5x purple]
[Attach a screenshot, circle the problem, and add a reference: "make it look like ..."]
Here's everything I want changed in one go:
1. Hide videos shorter than 2 minutes.
2. Add a star button on each card, give starred cards an orange outline, and add a "starred only" toggle at the top.
3. Add a hide button on each card.
4. Make the view counts white so they stand out.
5. Color the outlier score: over 5x purple, over 2x orange.
[Screenshot attached, problem circled. Make the cards look like YouTube's.]
Said out loud · KJ's prompt in our clean wordingSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
12
Share it with your team
The tool works for you and your team wants it too.
I want to create a simple website where my team can [WHAT THEY DO]. We're calling this the [NAME]. Here's what we want: [FEATURES].
Put it online so we can open it on our phones, and protect it with a password.
I want to create a simple website where my team can drop a link to a great LinkedIn post. We're calling this the Swipe File. Here's what we want: paste a link, add a note on why it works, filter by topic.
Put it online so we can open it on our phones, and protect it with a password.
Said out loud · KJ's prompt in our clean wordingSave 5 Hours example · not in the video
KJ shares his own prompt pack at bit.ly/KJxCJShow (link from the episode description).