Skip to main content

Before you arrive

Five things to do in the day or two before the session. None of them take long. They make a 3.5-hour session go twice as far.

1. Install the three tools​

We'll use these from minute one. Install them and sign in beforehand so we don't spend the session on setup.

  • Claude desktop app. claude.ai/download. It's one experience. Select your folder under the chat box and leave it on for most things. That's Cowork. Nothing selected is plain chat. Working in a folder is on paid plans, including Pro and Team. You do not need Max. Max is a higher usage tier, not the entry ticket. Check the current price at claude.com/pricing.
  • Granola. granola.ai. Meeting transcripts and notes, including on your phone. There is a free plan. Check the current price before you pay.
  • Wispr Flow. wisprflow.ai. Dictation everywhere, and meeting transcripts. There is a free plan. Check the current price at wisprflow.ai/pricing.

Spell it Wispr Flow. Two words.

If IT won't let you install something on your work laptop, tell us beforehand. We have alternatives. Claude's own microphone will cover dictation for the session if Wispr Flow isn't approved yet.

2. Ask IT to approve access​

This is the thing that most often blocks a session. Send the request a few days ahead, not the morning of.

Ask them to approve:

  • Connectors in Claude, starting with email and calendar (Microsoft 365 or Google), plus Slack if you use it
  • Granola
  • Wispr Flow
  • The Claude in Chrome extension, if you use portals that have no connector

On a Team or Enterprise plan, an admin has to add a connector for the organisation before you can connect it yourself. If that step hasn't happened, the connector won't appear for you in the room.

3. Bring real work​

The single biggest factor in how much you get out of the session. Have at hand:

  • An email or document you'd normally write yourself
  • A piece of research you've been putting off
  • A spreadsheet or report you regularly update
  • Anything you spend more than an hour a week on

The messier the better. Don't tidy it up. We work on the actual mess.

4. Identify two pain points​

Where do you lose the most time? Write down two specific examples. Not "I waste time on email". That's too vague. Something like:

  • "I spend an hour every Monday writing a weekly update for my board"
  • "Every time we onboard a new client, I rewrite the same proposal from scratch"

These become workflows we build live.

5. Send a short intake note​

Email ollie@aytonlabs.io before the session with:

  • Your two pain points
  • Which Claude plan you're on (Pro, Max, Team, or Enterprise)
  • Whether IT has approved Granola, Wispr Flow, and the connectors you want
  • Anyone else from your team who will be in the room

There isn't a separate form. The email is the intake.

Optional reading​

Twenty minutes that makes the session smoother:

You don't need to absorb everything. Skim, then come back after.

Bring your laptop, charged​

Sounds obvious. Worth saying.

Need to reschedule, or stuck on an install? Email ollie@aytonlabs.io.