The Layoff-to-Founder Playbook
Use AI to skip the rebuild-as-employee phase. The 90-day plan, the under-$150 stack, the 5 automations that compound, and the worksheets the two posts didn't have room for.
The decision tree, worksheets, templates, and 90-day rollout that the two articles in this wave couldn't fit. Print it. Fill it out. Tape the 4-question readiness gate to the wall. Ship the welcome-email template on Monday. The Playbook bundles every framework from both posts (the founder pivot, the under-$150 stack, the 5 marketing automations, the CRM decision tree) plus the worksheets you can't get from reading alone: the readiness gate, the stack shopping list with current 2026 prices, the printable 5-step automation sequence, the welcome email plus 7-email nurture written out, and the printable CRM decision flowchart. Same fair-trade rule as the rest of the library: one email, one form, no follow-up sales call.
- Part 1, the pivot decision. The math behind 'don't go back to the cycle' and how to read it for your specific situation.
- Worksheet 1, the 4-question founder-readiness gate. Printable, scored, takes 10 minutes. Three or four 'yes' answers means leap now. Two means earn into it. Zero or one means take path 1.
- Part 2, the DIY-AI skills path. The 30-minutes-a-day for 90 days curriculum that beats $5K bootcamps.
- Reference card, free certifications ranked by job-market signal. LinkedIn Learning to AWS AI Engineer Associate, four tiers, honest framing.
- Part 3, the under-$150 founder AI stack itemized with current 2026 prices, plus a printable shopping list worksheet you check off as you sign up.
- Part 4, the 5 marketing automations sequenced for the first 90 days. Plus the printable checklist with week-by-week deadlines.
- The welcome-email template (3 voice variants), the full 7-email nurture sequence written out and ready to paste, and the speed-to-lead alert + first-touch script.
- Part 5, the vendor-neutral CRM decision tree. Three questions, five sensible answers, plus a printable flowchart.
- Part 6, the 90-day rollout. Week 1 through week 13, paired against the 5 automations.
