Lab

Practical work.
Applied to real problems.

Working with small businesses and founders to understand how work gets done, identify operational bottlenecks, and design practical, AI-enabled improvements. Two active tracks — both grounded in real businesses, not hypotheticals.

A note on status: Labels below reflect where each project actually is — exploring, in progress, or complete. This page will grow as work progresses.

Track 01

Helping Small Businesses Operate More Effectively

Working with small businesses in my network to understand how work gets done, identify operational bottlenecks, and design practical, AI-enabled improvements. Current areas of focus include process design, workflow automation, reducing manual work, and building systems that are easy for small teams to adopt and maintain.

Current projects: a hat shop and a sculpture production company. Outputs include operational audits, workflow diagrams, AI opportunity assessments, knowledge bases, SOPs, implementation notes, and training materials.

Completed
Operational Audit & Marketing Strategy — Hat Shop

Mapped current operations across order management, inventory, customer communication, and fulfillment. Identified where manual work can be reduced or systematized. Developed a marketing and communication strategy to improve customer acquisition and retention without adding operational overhead.

In Progress
Workflow Redesign — Sculpture Production

Redesigning workflows across client inquiry, quoting, production tracking, and delivery coordination. Testing whether a small creative business can operate effectively with a minimal, intentionally designed tool stack — reducing administrative overhead so the founder can focus on production.

Exploring
AI-Assisted Client Communication Templates

Building reusable communication frameworks for small service businesses — inquiry responses, follow-ups, onboarding, and check-ins. Using AI to draft, then editing for the business's voice.

Exploring
Simple Ops Stack for 1–5 Person Businesses

Researching the minimum viable operations stack for a micro-business: what tools, what integrations, what processes. Low cost, low maintenance, actually used by non-technical founders.

Track 02

Building a Personal Training Business From Scratch

Using a personal training business as a real-world environment to design, test, and refine systems for growth. The work spans two connected areas: building the operational infrastructure needed to acquire and retain clients, and exploring products and tools — including custom-built applications — that improve the experience for both trainers and clients.

A /

Business Operations Layer

In Progress
Lead Generation & Client Acquisition

Designing the systems that turn awareness into conversations and conversations into clients. Exploring content, referrals, lead capture, CRM workflows, and follow-up processes that a solo trainer can realistically maintain.

In Progress
Client Onboarding Experience

Building a structured onboarding flow covering intake, goal setting, health history, scheduling, and first-session preparation. Designing for consistency, clarity, and minimal administrative effort.

Exploring
Client Retention & Engagement

Exploring what drives long-term client success and retention. Designing check-ins, accountability systems, milestone recognition, and re-engagement workflows that help clients stay committed to their goals.

In Progress
Marketing & Content Systems

Building a repeatable system for content creation, distribution, and audience growth. Exploring how AI can support planning, drafting, and repurposing content while preserving the trainer's voice and expertise.

B /

Product Creations Layer

In Progress
Personalized Nutrition Planning

Exploring how structured prompts, client inputs, and simple interfaces can help trainers create customized nutrition guidance more efficiently while maintaining quality and consistency. Prototyping a custom tool using AI-assisted development.

Exploring
Training Program Builder

Designing a system that helps trainers create, save, adapt, and assign training programs while reducing administrative overhead and maintaining flexibility for individual clients.

Exploring
Client Progress & Accountability

Exploring simple ways for clients and trainers to track progress, habits, and milestones. Testing which metrics and feedback loops actually improve engagement and long-term adherence.

In Progress
Scalable Coaching Products

Exploring what knowledge, frameworks, and resources can be packaged into reusable products that provide value beyond one-to-one coaching — from downloadable guides to AI-assisted tools built for trainer and client use.

Tools & Methods I'm Working With

n8n Make (Integromat) Zapier Notion Claude ChatGPT Lovable Cursor Supabase Figma HTML / CSS / JS Airtable

Working on something similar?

If you're a small business owner looking to reduce operational overhead, or you're curious about what this kind of work looks like in practice — I'm open to a conversation.