Brief Summary
This episode of The Calum Johnson Show features Dom Ashburn, also known as Mr. Grateful, who shares a framework for building a self-reliant business using mindfulness, AI, and social media. The discussion covers practical applications of AI for everyday individuals, the concept of AI agents, and a step-by-step process for identifying a business idea, validating it with AI, and marketing it through founder-led branding. The episode also explores the future of AI-driven companies and provides a challenge for viewers to take immediate action on their business ideas.
- Dom shares a three-step process for building a business using AI, mindfulness, and social media.
- The episode includes a live demonstration of building a custom GPT and a website using AI tools.
- Viewers are challenged to identify a business idea and take the first step towards its realization immediately.
Intro
The episode introduces Dom Ashburn, also known as Mr. Grateful, who shares his framework for building a self-reliant business using mindfulness, artificial intelligence, and social media. Dom moved to San Francisco to test this framework, emphasizing the importance of having a "button" or a digital exchange to provide value and receive value in return. The framework aims to empower individuals to create businesses using these three tools, starting with a human-centric approach and iteratively incorporating AI.
You need a “Buy” button (Dom's number 1 piece of business advice!)
Dom believes that money will flow to entrepreneurs in new ways, enabling individuals without traditional advantages to build products or services based on their unique gifts and strengths. He emphasizes that this doesn't necessarily mean creating the next AI unicorn but rather connecting with a group of people who relate to your story and are willing to pay for solutions to problems they also face. Social media removes gatekeepers, allowing direct connections between creators and consumers, while AI helps build products and iterate on ideas.
Can an AI run an ENTIRE company?
Dom discusses how AI advancements impact the everyday person, explaining that AI is not just for tech companies but can be used by anyone to validate ideas, gather information, and solve problems. He highlights the difference between AI, AI agents, and AGI (artificial general intelligence), noting that AI agents can execute plans and interact with other applications. Dom envisions a future where companies can be entirely run by AI, automating processes from idea generation to marketing and product creation.
Peter Levels’ viral flight sim — lessons in vibe-coding
Dom shares examples of individuals creatively using AI to build platforms and monetize them. He highlights Peter Levels, who built a flight simulator game using AI and monetized it through advertising space within the game. This approach, known as "vibe coding," involves using AI to code based on ideas and aesthetics rather than traditional coding methods.
Sponsor: Hostinger Horizons will build your website
This section is a sponsor advertisement for Hostinger Horizons, an AI-powered vibe coding tool that allows users to create custom websites with just a few clicks.
Vibe-coding 101: turning feelings into products
Vibe coding is coding based on your vibes. It's like you're coding based on just your idea and the aesthetic that you want versus having to go in there and actually like code.
Blake’s calorie-counting app (all ChatGPT prompts)
Blake Anderson made a calorie-counting app called Cal AI, demonstrating the potential of AI in product development.
Sponsor: Square will help you run your business
This section is a sponsor advertisement for Square, a platform that helps businesses manage payments, orders, and cash flow.
Founder-Led Brands: story SELLS, slides don’t
Dom emphasizes the importance of founder-led brands, where transparency and connection with the founder are key. He suggests sharing the process of building a product to involve others and build a customer base. This approach contrasts with the traditional method of building a product in secrecy and then launching it, as AI allows for faster iteration and real-time feedback.
The 3 Step Framework (The AI flywheel)
Dom outlines a three-step framework for building a business: self-reflection, AI integration, and social media engagement. Self-reflection involves identifying a frustration or pain point in your own life. AI helps fill the gaps in your understanding and provides solutions. Social media allows you to share your process, build a community, and validate your ideas. This iterative process enables rapid learning and creation.
LIVE build: CalumGPT in under 10 minutes
Dom shares his screen and demonstrates how to build a custom GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) for The Calum Johnson Show. He explains how to train the GPT with transcripts of previous episodes, personalize the experience with initial questions, and use it as a companion for entrepreneurs. Dom also discusses the importance of prompting AI to identify blind spots and potential weaknesses in your ideas.
Pricing, liability, & other creator fears — SOLVED
Dom addresses common concerns about using AI, such as the time commitment, liability for bad advice, pricing, and marketing. He uses ChatGPT to generate a game plan for addressing these concerns, including using the YouTube Data API for transcriptions and creating a custom GPT with a specific persona.
Replit vs V0 vs Roark — choosing your weapon
Dom discusses various AI tools for building websites and apps, including Replit, V0, and Roark. He explains that these tools vary in terms of technical knowledge required and versatility, with Replit being a user-friendly option for building web applications. Dom also demonstrates how to use Replit to create a landing page for the custom GPT.
The “lean-forward” rule for instant momentum
Dom emphasizes the importance of taking immediate action on your ideas, shortening the gap between thought and execution. He encourages viewers to "lean forward" and catch themselves with each step, making subtle, iterative progress.
Weekend challenge: palms open, idea downloaded
Dom challenges viewers to find a quiet space, close their eyes, open their palms, and wait for an idea to come to them. He encourages them to tap into their inner wisdom and take the first step towards realizing that idea, whether it's writing it down, drawing it out, or using AI to explore it further.
Dom’s closing gratitude (and YOUR next move)
Calum announces that his team will create a Google Form for viewers to submit their business ideas, providing a first step towards taking action. Dom expresses gratitude to the audience for their time and encourages them to believe in themselves and shorten the gap between idea and execution.
Training a custom GPT on 400+ hours of transcripts
Dom explains how to train a custom GPT with transcripts of previous episodes.
AgentGPT: turning comments & metrics into upgrades
Dom shares how he uses Agent GPT to analyze social media metrics and comments to improve his content. He screenshots insights and comments, uploads them to Agent GPT, and receives recommendations for future posts.
Dom’s “every creator needs a button” monetization play
Dom reiterates the importance of having a "button" or a digital exchange to monetize your creations.
Add personality to your GPT
Dom explains how to add personality to your GPT by giving it specific instructions and guidelines.
Decode your analytics: likes, saves, shares
Dom shares how he uses Agent GPT to analyze social media metrics and comments to improve his content. He screenshots insights and comments, uploads them to Agent GPT, and receives recommendations for future posts.
Plug & play website in Replit (full demo) -- it built the Apple Website
Dom demonstrates how to use Replit to build a website, explaining that it's a user-friendly option for those without coding experience. He also shows how to use images and other inputs to guide the AI in creating the desired design.
FINAL 5-min idea challenge & next steps
Dom challenges viewers to find a quiet space, close their eyes, open their palms, and wait for an idea to come to them. He encourages them to tap into their inner wisdom and take the first step towards realizing that idea.
