Beginner
Your AI Plan: Curious Starter
A safe, simple first month with AI, built around how you already sell.
You scored between 0 and 9, which makes you a Curious Starter. That's a good place to begin. You don't have bad habits to unlearn, and a few small changes will make a real difference in your first month.
In 30 seconds
- Your profile: "You have seen what AI can do, but it isn't doing much for your pipeline yet. A simple setup and a few tested prompts are enough to start getting real time back."
- Start with safety and setup, not clever prompts. They protect you and make every later answer better.
- Use AI for one real task, three times a week. Repetition beats variety.
- Expect about 30 minutes a week for four weeks.
- Retake the assessment at day 30 to see how far you've moved.
What Curious Starter means (and what it doesn't)
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| It means | It doesn't mean |
|---|---|
| AI isn't part of your normal week yet | You're behind for good. Most of the skill is learnable in a month |
| You haven't set up a tool for work | You need to be technical. You need to be clear, which you already are with buyers |
| You may not know your company's AI rules | You've done anything wrong. You just haven't been told |
| Your results so far have felt generic | AI doesn't work for sales. Generic output usually means missing context |
Strengths people at this level usually have
- Healthy skepticism. You don't take AI output at face value. That instinct is the core of fact checking, which many experienced users skip.
- Real selling instincts. You know your buyers, your product and what a good call feels like. AI can't supply that. You'll be the one supplying it to AI.
- A clean slate. You can build the right habits from day one: approved tools, sorted data and checked facts.
Your three biggest opportunities
When answers tie, the assessment ranks Fact checking first, then Data safety, then Workspace setup, because those protect you from the most expensive mistakes. That's why they often show up as a starter's focus areas.
Know what's safe (Data safety)
"Find your company's list of approved AI tools, then sort data before you paste: public info is fine, customer and deal details stay in the company workspace, and passwords or personal records never go in."
Tell AI who you are (Workspace setup)
"Write a one page seller context file: what you sell, your ideal customer, key personas, your voice and your rules. Save it in a Project so every chat starts with it."
Check before you trust (Fact checking)
"Open every source before a fact reaches a buyer. A link in the output is not proof until you click it, and pricing, security or ROI claims also need approval from the right owner."
These are the same tips your results screen showed for each area.
Your 30 day plan
Your results email sends one focus area each Monday for three weeks, then a final week to put it together. This table shows how to use those weeks at your level.
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| Week | Your email covers | What to do at your level | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Your first focus area | Find your approved tool and learn the data traffic light. Then do Your First Hour with AI, using your work account | About 30 minutes |
| 2 | Your second focus area | Pick one task you do three times a week, such as a call prep note. Use AI for it every time | 10 minutes, three times |
| 3 | Your third focus area | Write a short seller context file. Half a page is fine. Save it in a Project | About 30 minutes |
| 4 | Put it together and measure | Time your chosen task with and without AI. Write both numbers down, then retake the assessment | About 30 minutes |
Prompts to start with
These are built for a first month: low stakes, easy to check and useful right away. Run them in your company approved tool.
Prompt
Let AI interview you about your week
I'm a sales rep. Here's a task I do every week: {describe the task, for example "writing a short prep note before each discovery call"}. Ask me 5 questions about how I do it today, one at a time. Then suggest how AI could take over the slowest part, and what I should still do myself.Prompt
Draft your seller context file together
Help me write a one page seller context file. Ask me questions one at a time about: what I sell, who my ideal customer is, the 3 people I usually talk to, how I like to sound and any rules I must follow. When we're done, put my answers into a clean page with those 5 headings. Don't invent anything I didn't tell you.AI will sometimes fill gaps with confident guesses, called hallucinations. That's why this prompt says not to invent anything.
Prompt
Practice your first fact check
Tell me 5 recent facts about {a public company you know well}, with a source link for each. Then tell me which of those facts you are least confident about, and why.Now open every link. Note which facts held up. This is the habit that matters most.
Quick check
Is this safe to paste into your company approved AI workspace?
- A public press release about a prospect. Reveal: Yes. Green, fine in any approved tool.
- Your notes from yesterday's call with a named customer. Reveal: Yes, but only in the company approved workspace. Yellow, never a personal account.
- A customer's login details for a demo environment. Reveal: No. Red, never in any AI tool.
Try it now
Your first 15 minutes
- Open your company approved AI tool. Not sure which it is? Message your manager now and do steps 2 and 3 with public information only.
- Run the "interview you about your week" prompt on one real task.
- Save the answer somewhere you'll see it Monday. That task is your week 2 focus.
Your setup checklist
0 of 7 done
Ticks are saved in this browser only.
How to use your personal focus areas
Your results showed three focus areas, weakest first. Work on them in that order, one per week. Don't try to fix all ten. Each focus area has its own page, starting with Everyday use; where a page isn't live yet, the free guide next to it covers the same ground.
- Fact checking · guide: How to Use AI for Account Research
- Data safety · guide: AI Policy for Sales Teams
- Workspace setup · guide: AI for Sales: A Practical Guide
- Prompt structure · guide: AI Prompts for Sales
- Outreach writing · guide: Cold Emails with AI
- Account research · guide: How to Use AI for Account Research
- Everyday use · guide: AI for Sales: A Practical Guide
- Call prep and practice · guide: AI Sales Roleplay · goal: Stop freezing on objections
- Post call admin · guide: AI for Sales Call Notes
- Automation · guide: AI Sales Automation
Key idea
You don't need to become an AI expert this month. You need one safe habit and one task that gets faster.
Retake the assessment
Retake it at day 30, answering for your normal week. Occasional Experimenter starts at a score of 10. Each answer you move up one step adds a point.
Free assessment
What's next
You don't need to buy anything right now. The best next step is free.
Scroll sideways to see the whole table.
| Step | What it is | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Now | Start here: AI for Sales in Plain English and Your First Hour with AI | Free |
| This month | This 30 day plan, plus AI Prompts for Sales when you're ready for more | Free |
| When you're ready | Level 1 of the AI for Sales course, AI Foundations, which ends in a certificate of completion | Included with membership |
| Later | The AI for Sales Certification, once AI is part of your week | Paid |
Know your role? After this plan, Find your path gives prospecting reps, closing reps and leaders a reading order for their job.
Lead a team? If you took this as a manager, see team options or estimate the time your team could get back.
Frequently asked questions
Is a score of 0 to 9 bad?
No. It means AI isn't part of your week yet. Starters often move fastest, because the first changes (approved tools, a context file, one regular task) have the biggest effect.
Which AI tool should I start with?
The one your company approves for work. Setup and context matter more than the brand, and an approved work account keeps customer data safe.
How much time does this plan take?
About 30 minutes a week for four weeks. Week 2 is split into three short sessions.
Do I need to know how AI works first?
A little helps. Start here explains it in plain English in a few minutes. You'll learn the rest by using it.
When should I retake the assessment?
At day 30. Answer for your normal week, not your best day, so the score reflects real habits.
AI for Sales Certification
Start week 1 today
10 self paced sessions, an optional weekly live class and a graded capstone, all practiced on your own accounts. Membership is $50 a month. Add the $250 certification when you're ready.
Not sure where to start? Take the 2 minute assessment