1️⃣ First — Understand How AI Actually Learns

Before you start installing tools, pause.

If you don’t understand how AI learns, you’ll either:

• Over-trust it

• Fear it

• Or misuse it
  
  

The book that changed my perspective was:

📘 Scary Smart by Mo Gawdat

Correct spelling: Scary Smart: The Future of Artificial Intelligence and How You Can Save Our World.

This book was an eye-opener for me.

It helped me:

• Understand how machines learn from us
  
  

• Realize that AI reflects human behavior — good and bad
  
  

• Think about ethics before productivity
  
  

• See the long-term risks and responsibilities

It prepared me to work with AI intentionally — not blindly.

If you do nothing else, start there.

2️⃣ Second — Don’t Wait 7 Years Like I Did

Install Visual Studio Code.

Yes. The “developer tool.”

Let me be honest.

It took me seven years of my wonderful husband Patrick (a software developer, of course) telling me to try it… before I finally opened it.

Why?

Because I thought:

• “That’s for developers.”
  
  

• “That’s too technical.”
  
  

• “That’s not for accountants.”
  
  

And then I opened it.

And had an aha moment.

It’s basically Windows Explorer with superpowers.

You see folders.
You see files.
You can organize structure.
You can open documents.

Yes — developers use tons of functionality I don’t (yet).
But just using it as an advanced file organizer was the first efficiency unlock for me.

It changed how I think about:

• Project structure
  
  

• Automation
  
  

• Version control
  
  

• Reusability
  
  

And it’s free.

Helpful VS Code Installation Guides

I won’t rewrite installation steps here — there are great walkthroughs already:

Official download page:

Beginner-friendly YouTube guides: 

(These are easy, step-by-step, and very visual.) 

3️⃣ Install Python and Connect It to VS Code

Next step: install Python.

If AI is the brain, Python is the language that lets you speak to it.

This is where many finance professionals stop.

Don’t.

You don’t need to become a software engineer.
You need to become fluent enough to automate your own thinking.

Official Python Download:

YouTube Guide for Python + VS Code Setup: 

Look for:

• Installing Python
  
  

• Adding Python to PATH
  
  

• Installing Python extension inside VS Code
  
  

That’s it.

You don’t need anything fancy.

4️⃣ Add Microsoft Copilot (Optional — But Powerful)

If your company already has Microsoft 365, check whether you have access to:

Microsoft Copilot

Or consider subscribing yourself if you’re serious about productivity gains.

This may be the least exciting step — but it pays off quickly.

Why?

Because now:

• Your email drafting improves
  
  

• Your Excel formulas accelerate
  
  

• Your PowerPoint storytelling sharpens
  
  

• Your documentation becomes structured
  
  

It’s not glamorous.

It’s leverage.

And if you combine:

• Copilot
  
  

• VS Code
  
  

• Python
  
  

You now have a personal automation ecosystem.

The Real Mindset Shift

The biggest barrier isn’t installation.

It’s intimidation.

Developers use these tools.
So we assume we shouldn’t.

That belief cost me seven years.

Opening VS Code didn’t turn me into a developer.
It turned me into a more efficient finance leader.

And if you’re reading this, you’re probably ready.

Simple Starting Checklist

☐ Read Scary Smart
☐ Install Visual Studio Code
☐ Install Python
☐ Connect Python inside VS Code
☐ Explore Microsoft Copilot
☐ Create one small automation project

That’s it.

Don’t overthink it.

Just start.