Want to Automate Something? You’d Better Understand It First

Over the last year, I’ve been experimenting a lot with AI agents, and if there’s one lesson that keeps proving itself over and over, it’s this: you can’t automate what you don’t understand.

It sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how often people (myself included) try to delegate or automate tasks they can’t actually describe in clear, structured steps. The result? Subpar, unpredictable, and often useless outputs.

And in the age of AI, this is more true than ever.

AI doesn’t replace expertise—it amplifies it. If you know your craft inside and out, AI becomes an incredible tool, helping you streamline tasks, generate ideas, or speed up execution. But if you throw vague instructions at an AI, hoping it’ll “figure it out,” you’ll get a mess. It’s like hiring an intern without giving them any training or context and expecting perfection.

That’s why becoming an expert is more important than ever. Not because you need to do everything yourself, but because expertise now means you can explain what needs to be done in a clear, structured way.

The definition of expertise is evolving. It’s no longer just about being the best at executing a task—it’s about being able to break it down, explain it, and guide others (or an AI) to do it well.

Being a great developer? That now includes being able to describe how a feature should be built in a way that an AI assistant (or another developer) can follow.

Being a great designer? That means being able to communicate your vision in structured prompts and rules AI tools can interpret.

Being a great business leader? That’s understanding your processes well enough to delegate effectively—not just to people, but to AI-powered systems.

Before you rush to automate something, ask yourself:
✅ Can I describe this process in clear steps?
✅ Do I understand what “good” vs. “bad” results look like?

If the answer is no, the problem isn’t automation—it’s a lack of clarity.

The better you understand something, the better you can automate, delegate, or scale it. AI can help, but it can’t replace deep understanding.

So, before you try to automate, make sure you can explain. That’s where real leverage comes from.