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Stop guessing whether a task needs an automation or an AI agent

One task, nine questions, five minutes. The Leverage Ladder tells you whether to build a system, an automation, an AI task, or an AI agent — and stops you over-building it.

Instant download 1-page worksheet No call required ~5 minutes
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Preview of The Leverage Ladder: a four-level figure from System at the base up to AI agent, above a nine-row grid where you tick one answer per row across four columns and total each column.

The Leverage Ladder

Two sides. Page one: the four levels — system, automation, AI task, AI agent — and a nine-question grid. Tick one answer per row, total the columns, and the tallest column is the level to build this task at. A tie-breaker catches the most common mistake: building on a process nobody wrote down. Page two: the four-point check to run before you build at that level.

Isn't it obvious what needs AI and what doesn't?
It isn't, and the hype makes it worse. Most owners either reach for an AI agent because it's the thing everyone's talking about, or automate something that was never documented and wonder why it breaks. Nine questions sorts the task into the right level in a few minutes.
I'm not technical — will this make sense to me?
Yes. No code, no tool names. The questions are about your work — how often the task runs, whether the steps are written down, whether it needs a judgment call — and the score does the sorting.
My tasks don't fit into four neat boxes.
They don't have to. You run one task through it at a time, and the grid is built for the messy middle — the tie-breaker exists precisely because real tasks sit between two levels. It tells you which one to start at.
Is this just a lead-in to a sales pitch?
No. It's a five-minute worksheet you can use on its own and never speak to us. If you want a second set of eyes on your whole task list, that's a separate conversation you choose to have.

Work out what to build

One task, nine questions, about five minutes.

Get the Ladder