You can’t automate feelings. I tried.

Hey friends,

This week felt like three different careers wrapped into one.

Between coding visuals for my automation agency, navigating cold outreach fallout, and experimenting with AI dev tools. I realized again why I’m obsessed with systems.

They hold everything together when the week gets chaotic.

Here’s a look back:

1. AI-coded animations, deployed fast

The new services page and lead generation automation page on my agency site, Nimbflow, shipped with embedded flow visuals.

They weren’t hand-crafted. They were vibe-coded into existence using AI, then embedded using scoped HTML blocks in WordPress.

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Why? Because showing is more powerful than saying.

And building systems should feel like using one.

Every service page going forward will use this same pattern:

• AI-assisted flow generation
• Scoped IDs for each animation
• Clean HTML/CSS embedded for speed and control

2. Cold outreach feedback: Polarized but useful

Two replies called the emails thoughtful and well-written.

Another lead said they’d like to discuss pricing.

One even complimented the iPhone touch in the message.

But then came this:

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A one-liner reply calling us idiots. No feedback. No context. Just bile.

Why?

Because I included a forwarded-message style opener to simulate internal research context. Yea sure, that might seem a little “hacky” but hey that’s a creative cold email strategy.

Don’t like it? Just ignore.

I’m not censoring the name. If you’re that rude for no reason, you get called out.

Separately, one prospect flagged that receiving email on a Saturday felt intrusive.

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She wasn’t exactly polite, but at least it wasn’t an insult.

She’s not wrong, either. Not every system respects context by default. That part’s on me.

3. Cursor vs Windsurf: AI coding UX matters

This week, I also compared Cursor and Windsurf for WordPress plugin dev work:

• Cursor: Lightweight, fast, minimal friction
• Windsurf: Stronger prompt chaining, better context window

I used both while building a new plugin suite to showcase micro tools and lead magnets for Nimbflow.

Verdict: Windsurf wins for deeper workflows. Cursor wins for quick edits.

The tradeoff is speed vs scoped memory.

4. Local WordPress testing = massive unlock

I started using LocalWP to sandbox WordPress plugin development before shipping it to the live site.

It blew my mind:

• Instant feedback loop
• Zero deploy delay
• Full plugin testing in isolation

This makes building way faster and safer.

I don’t know why or how I didn’t find out about this sooner.

5. I’m back on YouTube (well, kinda)

After nearly three years off the platform, I dropped a new YouTube video walking through Make.com’s brand-new AI Agent feature.

I demo-ed the feature by building a simple blog writing agent in real-time:

• Retrieves a target keyword from a Google sheet
• Researches it using perplexity
• Uses custom agent tools (built with Make scenarios)
• Generates a multi-section blog post using GPT

No fancy cuts. No animations. Just screen + voice + logic.

This wasn’t made to impress YouTube’s algorithm.

It was made to show builders what’s now possible. And also get myself back to being comfortable on camera for future content.

If you’re using Make and want to experiment with AI agent workflows, or just want to see how I think through automation, give it a watch.

Takeaway: Systems scale delivery not perception

You can optimize send times.

You can personalize cold emails.

You can build responsive automation flows.

But you can’t automate how people feel.

This week reminded me: Reactions are random. Systems are not.

Keep shipping. Let the work compound.

See you in the next one.

Brendan