The harness is all you need (mostly)

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by AI right now, you’re not alone.

Every day it seems there is a new tool, new MCP, new model, new skill, new workflow, new feature, new social post that is some form of “Hey look! I have completely figured out AI with this one weird prompt.”

I…don’t believe you.

I work with AI every single day, and what I’m finding is that less is way more. It’s not about what I install or configure or trick the agent into doing that makes any real difference. That stuff is interesting, but at the end of the day it feels like gimmicks.

I see the biggest gains in my productivity from how I use the harness and how well I understand it.