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How AI Helped Me Save My Day — and Refocus on What Actually Matters

Roger Mao |

A few months ago, I sat in front of my laptop, staring at a blank Instagram post draft.
I knew I needed to post — for visibility, for sales, for momentum.
But my brain froze. I wanted the caption to be strategic. I wanted the image to be good.
And I wanted to be doing something else — something that made money, not just noise.

That tension — between what I knew I should do and what I had energy for —
has been one of the hardest parts of being a solo founder.

I’ve run studios where I did everything. I’ve designed hardware, sourced factories, and led team calls at 3 a.m.
And even now, running MOFORMER™, I find myself slipping into the same trap:
trying to do too much, too perfectly, and then getting stuck.

Then Something Shifted

Recently, I started using AI differently.
Not just as a curiosity — but as a partner.

Here’s what happened today:

  • I had 3 follow-up emails I needed to send — important ones, to real customers

  • I had 50+ studio leads to research for an outreach campaign

  • I had 0 content scheduled for Instagram, and no mental space to create something new

Normally, that would mean postponing at least 2 out of 3.
But today, with ChatGPT and a couple of no-code tools, I got them all done in less than two hours.

Here's What I Used

  • 🧠 ChatGPT → to draft concise, clear, professional emails

  • 🗺 Apify → to scrape 50+ local Pilates studios with websites and phones

  • ✍️ GPT again → to generate 3 Instagram captions based on my tone + product

  • ✅ I didn’t overthink. I shipped. I moved.

The Real Win

It’s not that AI made me productive.
It’s that AI made me feel unstuck.

It removed the weight of “starting.”
It helped me get into motion, and that motion gave me energy for the next thing.
I wasn’t dragging myself through the day. I was moving through it with rhythm.

And maybe that’s what AI is really here for —
not to replace us, but to unstick us.

What You Can Take From This

If you're a solo founder, creator, or builder — you don’t need more hustle.
You need more leverage.

Try this tomorrow:

  • Write down one thing you’re stuck on (email, caption, message)

  • Open ChatGPT and describe what you want to say — like you’d explain it to a friend

  • Let it give you a rough draft

  • Tweak. Ship. Done.

The point isn’t to get it perfect.
The point is to get it moving.

I don’t believe AI is a magic bullet.
But I do believe this: if I use it well, it lets me focus on the work that truly matters —
the vision, the product, the relationships, the clarity.

And for founders like us, sometimes that’s all we need:
A little momentum. A little help. A little breath.

– Roger Mao
Founder, MOFORMER™

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