Lately, it feels like everyone is talking about AI. It’s not going to steal our jobs, but it’s definitely changing how we build things. My approach is to treat AI as a collaborator—a tool that’s amazing at getting rid of the tedious, boilerplate work so I can focus on the bigger picture.
I actually wrote a whole article about my process and philosophy on this. Here are a few key ideas from the piece:
- Be super specific with your prompts. I’ve found that vague instructions give you vague results. When you tell the AI exactly what you need, it can be an incredible time-saver.
- Let it handle the boring setup. I use AI to generate initial project files, write repetitive functions, and even mock up designs. It’s a core part of my workflow now.
- Always review the code. AI-generated code is just a starting point. I always take the time to refactor and test it to make sure it’s up to my standards for production.
Treating AI like a pair programmer has been a game-changer for me. I can build things faster and even pick up a few new tricks along the way.
If you’re interested in my full process, you can read the article I wrote over on freeCodecamp.