Absences, KPI Updates, Book Title and Pre-Order Bundle Reveal

Narrator (00:04): Welcome to Raw Data with Rob Collie. Real talk about AI and data for business impact. And now, CEO and founder of P3 Adaptive, your host, Rob Collie.

Rob Collie (00:20): Hello, friends. We've been a bit quiet here at the Raw Data Podcast lately, and I apologize for that. We've had plenty to talk about. There's just been too much real life unfolding behind the scenes. More on that in a moment. Justin and I recorded next week's episode already, though, and now we're releasing this one, so we're back, and now with some buffer against future interruptions.

(00:41): First, let's revisit and retire two long-running KPIs from this podcast. One, this is no longer the Rob Is Sick podcast. I think that number made it up into the 70s, as in 70-plus days of consecutive days I was sick. But, now I am better. No one ever figured out what was wrong with me and why I felt like I had the flu for 70-plus days. It just went away. A little unsatisfying on the understanding front, but I'll take it, because that really sucked.

(01:11): The other KPI, how many book pages have I written? Capped out at 224, because that is the length of the final book, and I am finished. As in, sent to the printer, finished. Not actually being printed yet, but it's in the hands of the printing company. Now, I finished writing the last few pages sitting in the hospital because my wife had to have emergency surgery. She's doing great now, but that was certainly unexpected and it consumed about 10 days of our lives that we didn't expect, which is why we're a couple of weeks behind on podcast episodes. But, before I buried the lead too deeply, I'd like to finally reveal that the book is titled Fair Game: Customizing AI to your business is easier than you think. Now, I love the dual meaning to "fair game." And, by the way, the AI in fair is colored differently on the cover. Pretty clever, huh?

(02:01): The first meaning of "fair game" is, as in the game is fair. AI is open to anyone. It's not reserved for big companies, it's not reserved for tech companies, it's not even reserved for tech people, because it's business people who are going to be shaping it. AI is a lot more understandable and affordable than even I expected. There's just been too much noise around it on LinkedIn and elsewhere, and no one is really all that incentivized to explain it clearly, which is why most of the business world is kind of sitting and waiting to find out what's going to happen to them, both to their companies and to their careers, rather than confidently engaging. Everyone needs to understand AI and everyone can understand it. I've been testing the book with a preview audience that's deliberately a mix of tech and non-tech people, and it's been filling in a lot of gaps with the tech crowd.

(02:55): For example, the consultants at our company have been reading it while it's been in progress for the last several months, and it's helped them see that AI really is just about data and regular software. Seeing how their careers in data translate to AI has really helped them. At the same time, I've been positively delighted by the non-tech crowd's reaction. People of my parents' generation even telling me things like, "Ooh, I was at a party the other night, and someone said something about AI, and I was able to correct their misunderstanding." Absolutely not off limits. This stuff does not have to be elitist. And then there's the second meaning of "fair game," meaning it's open season. AI is fair game for you and your business, even today. No need to wait, you and your business can get started very quickly. You just need a little bit of fundamental understanding and a little bit of knowledge of how to get started.

(03:46): This is the book that I needed and wished I'd had 18 months ago. I went down the AI rabbit hole, not with the intention of writing a book, but purely to plot a course for our company. My own process of ramping up on AI was driven by survival. And when it started coming into focus, I was really surprised by how accessible it was. That is when I realized I kind of needed to write a book, like I almost owed it, which is exactly how I felt when I wrote my Power BI books more than 10 years ago.

(04:16): The physical book will hit shelves in August, but you don't have to wait to get started. You can get the first four chapters today if you pre-order at the website fairgamebook.ai. Then, between now and launch, we're going to release two more chapters, plus a reference card.

(04:32): And then, on launch day in August, when the hardcover book ships, you will get instant access as a pre-order customer to the full ebook and audiobook formats, neither of which will be available immediately on Amazon.

(04:44): And then, we're going to do some live Q&A sessions with me for the pre-order customers, shortly after a book launch. Ordering direct genuinely helps us more than you'd guess. So, we made it the better deal for you too. Advanced access, perks like the ref card and the Q&A, instant access to all three formats, for a total price that's quite a bit less than what you pay for them at full retail. So, yeah, please go to fairgamebook.ai and get started. And the instant access chapters you get, please feel free to share them. It's win-win. There's a lot of value in the pre-order chapters and people will benefit from them.

(05:17): Worst case, someone reads a few free chapters they enjoy, and then best case, they pre-order too. I'm really happy with how the book turned out, and a lot of people finish it in one or two sittings. So, the more people who get a preview of it, the better.

(05:30): Oh, one more thing before I let you go. Last week, one of the ideas I share in the book quite literally made the news. Fortune, of all outlets, ran an article I wrote, a short little essay which grew out of a single paragraph in chapter 10 of the book. And then, it got picked up by other properties like Yahoo Finance and MSN. Hands down the most exposure I've ever received in the news, not even close. The article is about why big tech laying off developers and our 50-person company hiring developers for the first time, both make sense, and how we might see this pattern play out on an increasing scale. A migration of sorts.

(06:08): And I wrote chapter 10 months ago, well before the recent layoff headlines, which is kind of the point. It's a lens on what's ahead. If you've never read anything that I've written before, the article's also a pretty good sample of the writing and thinking style that you will find in the book. So, the link to that article is in the show notes.

(06:25): Anyway, it feels really good to be back. Like I said, Justin and I already have next week's episode in the can, so this time we're not going anywhere. Thanks for sticking with us through the quiet stretch, the flu that wouldn't quit, the hospital detour, all of it. We're on the other side now. The book is real and I genuinely can't wait for you to read it. So, go grab those first few chapters at fairgamebook.ai, and Justin and I will talk to you next week.