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"If your team is too busy doing their 'normal job' to experiment with AI, you're preparing them to be replaced." Geoffrey Huntley wrote that last week. I agree, and I'd go further.

I still know engineers who say they won't use AI. AI won't replace them. Engineers who use it every day will. Without AI, the work is too slow compared to theirs. They try more ideas, ship more, and still have time to check what they ship.

Using AI at work isn't enough. Build the thing you've always wanted to build. With coding agents, that takes evenings, not months, and that experience is what makes you valuable at work.

Pay for AI yourself and use it on your own code. If your company doesn't allow AI, keep your subscription away from its code and your clients' code. A $20 plan is enough to start. Treat it as an investment, not a cost.

Then show your work. Publish the repo, write a short post, share what broke. One piece of advice: this week, build a small proof of concept you've always wanted, with a coding agent. Then publish it, together with what you learned.