This Is How You Get Good at AI
Source: Mike Kentz Substack
Author: Mike Kentz
Original source: https://mikekentz.substack.com/p/this-is-how-you-get-good-at-ai
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Summary
Mike Kentz argues that becoming good at AI is less about prompt-engineering tricks and more about reflective habits around AI use. Drawing on Ethan Mollick’s “jagged frontier” advice and Andrew Palmer’s audio diary experiment, he frames the oscillation between amazement and disappointment as useful data when users intentionally capture it. Kentz describes journaling before, during, and after AI-assisted creative writing sessions, where the journal—not the AI—surfaced key insights about his process. The article introduces an AI Journal as a structured reflection tool that turns AI sessions into a mirror of personal habits and a playbook of tested strategies.
Big ideas
- Students need to bring the purpose; AI should not supply it for them
- AI literacy should help people notice how AI changes what counts as knowing
- Learning still needs some struggle, even when AI can make things easier
- AI simulations need clear boundaries for learning
Claims
- Students need boundaries for when to use AI and when to step back
- Prompting AI is a literacy practice, not just a technical trick
- AI speed can make people feel guilty for thinking slowly
- Learning requires some productive struggle that AI can remove
Key evidence and examples
- Andrew Palmer’s audio diary becomes an example of reflective AI practice during workplace experimentation.
- Kentz names the feeling of “teetering at the edge of disappointment” as a recurring AI-use experience worth studying.
- His MFA/novel-revision routine includes before-session goals, mid-session notes, and after-session observations.
- The AI Journal structure creates intentional pauses before and after AI use so users can notice what changed in their thinking.
Education relevance
Useful for AI literacy instruction, student metacognition, writing pedagogy, teacher professional learning, and moving beyond prompt tips toward reflective routines.