Presented at the AIBusiness Breakfast on Sept 16
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About me: Profc.io and all my contact information at profcnews.com
Three Things AI can do.
https://www.anthropic.com/research/claude-code-expertise
Anthropic studied 400,000 real AI sessions, and it turns out that the users getting twice as much value from AI than the average don't have technical skills - they have traditional managerial skills:
🚀 Domain expertise — they deeply understood the work they do, so they could define what great looks like
🚀 Instruction & direction — they knew how to turn their expertise into clear instructions, rules, sources & examples at the right "pitch" for AI to follow
🚀 Evaluation & feedback — they could rapidly assess what AI produced, find where it had failed & provide the feedback needed, so they can optimise the system
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Use AI to help you come up with possibilities, see an idea from another angle, avoid group think, and stress test ideas. .
We'll start with everyday examples, then try the same process with Tom Bradley's business.
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Tojin T. Eapen, Daniel J. Finkenstadt, Josh Folk, and Lokesh Venkataswamy, How Generative AI Can Augment Human Creativity, Harvard Business Review, July–August 2023. Includes trisociation and other ways AI can support creativity.
Vijay Govindarajan, Daniel J. Finkenstadt, and Tojin T. Eapen, In Turbulent Times, Consider “Strategic Subtraction”, Harvard Business Review, June 17, 2025. Consider effort, resilience, and whether people can still see the value of the offer.
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Ideation means coming up with possibilities.
Did changing the question give us different ideas-or just more ideas?
“What if we combined these two things”
Three familiar things can suggest an unfamiliar possibility.
The technique is called trisociation. For today, think of it as “combine three things.”
| Three ingredients | Prompt |
|---|---|
| Elephant + watering can + children's garden | Combine an elephant, a watering can, and a children’s garden. Suggest three different product or experience ideas. Explain what each ingredient contributes. |
| Bakery + passport + subscription | Combine a bakery, a passport, and a subscription. What could a customer buy or experience? |
| ______ + ______ + one random (but logical) thing that you come up with |
What useful insight could we borrow from it, even if we never build the whole thing?
“You will play the role of an ideator. You will randomly generate 10 common nouns. You will then randomly select any two of the 10 nouns. You will then ask me for a third noun. You will generate a business idea by combining or associating the two nouns you identified and the noun I identified.”
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Coffee shop + library + subscription
Take 30 seconds to imagine your own combination before we ask AI.
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Tom Bradley: podcast + consulting + a forthcoming book
Tom has given permission to use his business as our example.
We do not know his prices, spare hours, client industries, customers' unmet needs, or book contents. Treat new offers as possibilities. Do not invent these facts.
The same combining technique now has a business purpose:
| What Tom brings | Who he knows | A possible need |
|---|---|---|
| Interviewing experience | Podcast sponsors | Understanding their customers |
| A forthcoming book | Existing business contacts | A meaningful group discussion, if the book fits |
These needs are possibilities to investigate. We have not heard them from Tom's customers.
Tom’s opportunities: look through someone else’s eyes
What might a sponsor, client, or reader want that Tom hasn't considered?
Choose one idea to examine. Does it fit Tom? Who might pay? What don't we know yet?
Notice the combination: Tom's interviewing skill, an existing sponsor relationship, and a possible need to understand customers.
What are we missing?
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How could Tom’s book become something people actively recommend?
Creative prompts for the launch
1. Turn the launch into something people participate in
How could Tom turn his book launch into something people participate in, rather than an announcement they scroll past? Suggest five experiences that could connect his podcast, his relationships, and the book. Explain what participants would actually do and why they might bring someone else.
2. Use trisociation ✱
Combine these three ingredients: a book launch, a scavenger hunt, and a local business community. Generate three launch concepts. Explain how each ingredient contributes and how participation could lead to genuine interest in the book.
Now combine a book launch, a reunion, and a podcast. What different possibilities appear?
Combine Tom’s book, a dinner party, and [audience suggestion]. Give us one practical concept and one surprising concept worth exploring.
3. Find an unexpected buyer
Identify five types of buyers we might overlook. Consider someone buying for themselves, someone buying a gift, and an organization buying for a group. For each, explain the occasion or need that could make the book relevant. Don’t assume every group is a fit.
Which of these buyers might already be connected to Tom through his podcast, sponsors, or consulting relationships? Suggest a natural way to explore interest without assuming those relationships guarantee sales.
4. Borrow a launch approach from another field
Look at how a neighborhood festival, a film premiere, and a museum exhibition create anticipation and participation. Borrow one mechanism from each for Tom’s book launch. Make the resulting ideas genuinely different, and explain what would have to fit the book for each to work.
Which idea could Tom deliver through a small partnership rather than organizing everything himself?
5. Design for readers recommending it
Imagine someone finishes Tom’s book and immediately thinks of a particular person who should read it. What features of the reading or launch experience could encourage that moment? Suggest five approaches that earn recommendations through relevance and usefulness.
What would make someone say, “You need to read this because…”? Give us five possible endings to that sentence, clearly identifying which depend on knowing the book’s contents.
6. Leverage the podcast ✱
How could Tom use his podcast to create curiosity about the book over several episodes without repeating a sales pitch? Suggest three different series concepts. For each, explain why someone who never buys the book would still find the episodes worthwhile.
How could listeners contribute a question, experience, or story that makes the series more interesting? Explain what Tom would need to do with those contributions.
7. Create a reason to buy more than one copy
Assuming the book is a good fit for its intended readers, what genuine situations could make someone want multiple copies? Explore gifts, shared experiences, and group discussion. Suggest a useful accompanying experience for each, without relying on discounts or creating extensive ongoing work for Tom.
8. Design the smallest exciting launch
Tom can pursue only one launch concept. It must fit his personality, use relationships he already has, and avoid becoming another full-time job. Compare our three strongest ideas. What would you preserve, simplify, and leave out of each?
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