Yo work fun nation,

Did I ever tell you about the time I was actually replaced by a robot? As in really, really.

No joke, it happened talaga and may financial recibo syempre.

I had this premium client with an amazing working relationship for over 2 years. Consistent projects, great rates, smooth workflow. Life was good.

As in really good. 

For this specific client, the work was spread over a small team of 4 editors. These were mostly a LOOOOT of testimonial videos and some bigger marketing campaigns that I would help them plan. (Shoutout to my team Gian, Mikee, Jed, and Chabs) - they're also subscribed here in our email list). 

In general, I separate my editors by client, depending on how large they are. 

I had Claude AI compute their lifetime value (based on their actual PayPal payment data) so far and it came up with this:

Over the next few months though, the editing requests started to slow down... and eventually dried up almost completely.

And this was one of my ideal clients. We weren't slacking off, either. Heck they even have this glowing testimonial for me. 

This client still works with us, but only when they need something custom with a lot of moving parts that AI can't handle yet. We went from regular weekly work for almost 2 years to occasional projects. 

The difference in frequency was simply night and day.

The reason why was, and you probably already know, was that their marketing department started using tools that didn't need a dedicated video editor.

"Is this it? Am I done as a freelancer?! O hinde!!!" I asked myself. 

And I knew I was overreacting lol. Meron pa naman ibang clients but let’s face it guys, ambilis minsan ma-shake ng self-confidence natin. 

Ganon kasi talaga industry e. Things change quickly kasi we’re working online. More so for me as a video guy. Literally hundreds of apps are coming out every week to take me out of the equation. 

I couldn't just ignore AI anymore or pray it would go away. Good thing I started studying it intently back in 2022. The foresight is now paying off. 

Most Pinoy freelancers are adopting one of two dangerous mindsets:

1. "AI will replace us all! Game over!" (The panic and depression approach)
2. "AI is just a fad. My skills are special. I’m irreplaceable!" (The denial approach)

Both are recipes for disaster.

Instead, I chose a third path - becoming AI-Prooficient. And no, that's not a typo.

Let me break this down.

• "Proof" as in "bulletproof" - making your career resilient against AI disruption
• "Pro" as in "professional" - mastering AI at a professional level for your industry
• "Proficient" - becoming skilled at working with, not against, these tools

Put them together and now you're AI-Prooficient: a freelancer who's not just protected from AI disruption but actually thriving because of it.

Kumbaga you're not only resilient, but you're proficient pa! Tada! Hahaha 

Being AI-Prooficient means knowing exactly:

• What AI can do (so you don't compete where you'll lose) 
• What AI can't do (so you focus on your human superpowers)
• How to use AI to enhance your work (so you deliver 5x the value in half the time)

Embracing this mindset, things started to change din.

I had a new client come in, and instead of just pitching my regular video services, I implemented my AI workflow. I offered a 25-minute consultation and strategy call - something I never used to charge for - and walked away with $300 USD just for that initial session. 

Just. The. Consultation.

And we had a couple more calls after that. On-Demand Consultations lang. Kumbaga laway lang. Sheesh

Then when someone referred me to their network, I used AI to craft emails and organize project proposals so quickly and professionally that they thought I was some kind of organizational wizard. 

Those excellent questions? ChatGPT lang yun. Hahaha

Just last week, I saw an open gig for video script writing in one of my communities. The job posting specifically mentioned they had already tried using AI and it didn't work.

After checking their resources, I realized that they may have not been as thorough lang. I gave it a shot.

I spent twenty minutes crafting a specialized prompt, made a quick video explaining my approach, and now the prospect might be interested in what could be a $1,000 USD project. 

Twenty minutes of work for potentially $1,000 in revenue. Hindi pa ito closed guys, so wish me luck!

How? I used AI to find patterns on their best performing videos, developed a framework that matched their writing style, and even gave them variations of the script to literally 3x their output, in half the time it takes to take 1 script.

Let me tell you a secret, . 

Well di naman na sya secret.

And I’m probably preaching to the choir in this list (you’re here after all because you want to work less and earn more - and a big part of that can be done through AI) 

The freelancers who will thrive in this new world aren't the ones fighting against AI - they're the ones leveraging it like crazy.

Here's how I went from AI-Proof (resisting the change) to AI-Prooficient:

1. I learned to use prompts strategically, collecting and refining the highest-leverage ones that can increase my speed from lead to close when clients inquire.
2. I identified my most time-consuming tasks and found AI tools to 10x my professionalism and productivity: Happy Scribe for transcriptions, Minvo for video generation, ChatGPT for community support, creating highly engaging cold emails that ACTUALLY work, Claude for email writing and research, NotebookLM for reverse engineering processes. Then ChatGPT uli for quick visuals.
3. I completely reimagined my service offerings to highlight what only a human (specifically me) can do. Heck might even switch offers just for fun now kasi the possibilities are endless!
4. I doubled down on charging for outcomes, not hours - because with AI assistance, I could deliver much faster.

Now I'm doing more of the work I enjoy, less of the grunt work I hate, and earning more than ever.

What about you, ? Are you still trying to be AI-Proof? Or are you ready to become AI-Prooficient? 

Hayst ang hina talaga ng pun na AI-PROOFICIENT, but I’ll go with it na muna to finish this email.

Listen, I'm not here to freak you out. I'm here to help you see that this massive shift is actually the biggest opportunity for Filipino freelancers in decades - but only if we adapt.

Shoden "AI Naku" San

P.S. Being "AI-Prooficient" isn't about becoming a programmer or tech expert. It's about being strategic in how you incorporate these tools into your workflow.

Think of it as learning to drive rather than learning to build a car. You don't need to understand every technical detail - you just need to know which buttons to push to get where you want to go.

Even my 65-year-old Tita is using ChatGPT to write her church announcements now! If she can do it, you definitely can.

If you're interested in learning my exact AI workflow that helped me reclaim 15+ hours every week, reply with "AI Naku!" 50 replies gets a follow up on this, and I may develop this into a product that I'll sell to the public.

Syempre as a solid reader, you'll get it at launch price.

If wala naman enough responses, life goes on for everyone haha. No biggie.

🎉 Pst. Don't Keep Me A Secret. refer this newsletter to your freelancer friends. This REALLY REALLY helps me a lot, thanks! Or if you're done referring and you just want to buy me some coffee, I won't stop you.