AI Didn't Replace My Story. It Helped Me Finally Tell It.

Welcome to The Real Work, weekly insights for high-performers and entrepreneurs who've outgrown their current success and are ready to rebuild from their authentic foundation.

Today's newsletter is brought to you by The Social Lead Capture System, because your engagement shouldn't evaporate the moment someone scrolls past.

I built an app in a few hours that now generates affiliate revenue while I sleep.

No coding. No developers. No waiting weeks for someone else to build what I could describe in two sentences.

​The Social Lead Capture System teaches you how to turn your social media engagement into leads, subscribers, and revenue using no-code tools like Lovable and Stanley AI. You'll build apps that capture attention, deliver value, and move people toward working with you — all on autopilot.

As a father of four, I don't have time to do all this stuff manually. This system does it for me.

Pre-sale price: $47 (goes to $97 after January 30). You'll get access February 1st, plus a live workshop on February 12th where we build your app together.

And now, let's get started . . .

People think AI is going to make us less human.

I think they've got it backwards.

For seven years, I've carried a story I rarely shared publicly. In 2017, my son TJ died. Stillbirth at 36 weeks. I held his body in my arms, rocking him back and forth like any dad would, hoping for a breath that never came.

ConvertKit made a documentary about my journey. How I rebuilt my life after losing TJ, battling alcohol addiction, getting fired from Facebook. How I used all that pain as fuel instead of letting it destroy me.

It's one of the most important pieces of content I've ever been part of.

And I've done a terrible job promoting it.

Not because I forgot about it. Because sharing something that raw takes emotional energy I don't always have. Every time I thought about posting, I'd freeze. The weight of it felt overwhelming.

Then something shifted.

How AI Helped Me Honor My Son

Over the past few months, I've been deep in the AI rabbit hole. Sometimes waking up at 3 AM just to experiment with new tools. Not because I had to. Because I genuinely enjoy it.

One night, I had a thought: What if AI could help me share this story without draining me every time?

Here's what I built:

Step 1: Break the story into pieces I took the full YouTube documentary and uploaded it to Opus Clips. Within minutes, it gave me several short-form clips ready for social media.

The thing is, losing a child and overcoming addiction is heavy. Most people won't sit down for a 15-minute documentary from someone they don't know. But a 90-second clip? That's a door. A way in. If they feel something, they'll watch the full thing.

Step 2: Make it easy for them to go deeper I use a tool called Stan for my content. I set up a landing page for the documentary with a few options for people who want to connect further:

• Book me as a keynote speaker
• Explore a brand partnership
• Schedule coaching time

Step 3: Automate the outreach Using Stanley AI, I wrote captions designed to drive people to the documentary. Then I set up an automation where people can comment "DOCUMENTARY" and get a DM with the link automatically.

No chasing. No forgetting to follow up. The system does the work.

Why This Matters

I know a lot of people are afraid AI is going to dehumanize us. Remove the human element from everything.

But here's what I've discovered: AI didn't replace my story. It gave me a way to finally share it.

The pain is still mine. The transformation is still mine. The message is still mine.

AI just removed the friction that kept me from getting it out there.

And now my son's legacy reaches people I'll never meet.

I've Built This Into a System

Using a tool called Lovable, I've been building apps that help my audience solve problems. The same automation framework I use for the documentary works for everything: content engagement, lead capture, monetization.

I post something valuable. People comment a keyword. They get sent to an app or landing page that delivers more value. Some of them become coaching clients, newsletter subscribers, or buy products I recommend as an affiliate.

It's ridiculously simple to set up. You literally think, talk, copy and paste, and let the agents do their thing.

Here's What I'm Offering

If you've been getting engagement on your content but struggling to monetize it, I want to help you build these systems too.

I'm putting together a program where I'll show you exactly how I'm doing this.

Important caveat: If you're not already getting engagement on your content, this isn't for you. This isn't about getting engagement. It's about closing the loop on the engagement you already have.

The Social Lead Capture System includes:

• Step-by-step system for building lead capture systems with Lovable (no coding required)
• Content engine setup with Stanley AI
• Nurture sequence framework
• An AI Agent trained on the entire system
• Monthly mastermind calls
• Access to recordings of me building these agents live with other entrepreneurs

BONUS: Live Workshop — February 12th, 12pm - 3pm EST

We're building your app together, live. You'll leave with:

• A working lead magnet app
• Beta testers from the workshop
• 20 pieces of content
• Full recording (if you can't make it live)

Pre-sale price: $47 (goes to $97 after January 30)

This is a pre-sale. You'll receive full access on February 1st — giving you time to get your hands dirty before the workshop.

I've been teaching for over 10 years at NYU, General Assembly, and corporate workshops. This is the most excited I've been about something in a long time. Because it actually works.

Your story matters.

Maybe it's not about losing a child. Maybe it's about overcoming something else entirely. Whatever it is, you owe it to yourself to share it.

AI isn't the enemy of authenticity. It might be the thing that finally helps you get your message out there.

Stay up,

Terry

Real Quick: The live workshop on February 12th isn't a webinar where I talk at you for three hours. We're building your app together. You'll leave with something that works — not just notes you'll never look at again. [Grab your spot]​

One More: My app STACK shows exactly how I structure my day, the tools I use, and the habits that keep me focused. It runs on affiliate revenue and took a few hours to build. That's the power of this system. [Check it out here]​

Last One: If you know someone who's sitting on a great story but struggling to share it, forward this to them. Sometimes the answer isn't more courage. It's a better system.

Find me on Linke​dIn, YouTube, Instagram, or visit my store.

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