Let an agent act on its own, one action type at a time
Start every AI agent in approval mode, count your edits by type of action, and switch a type to automatic only after two weeks without edits.
By Angelo Natale30 minSet up once, then review every two weeks
What it does
An AI agent that sends emails, updates your CRM or books meetings is only as good as the rules you gave it. Turn it all on at once and you find out what’s wrong from your buyers. Start every agent in approval mode instead: it drafts, you approve. When one kind of action goes two weeks without you editing it, that kind can run on its own. Some kinds never should.
What you need
- An agent or automation that drafts actions: emails, CRM updates, reminders
- Somewhere to approve them quickly, like Slack
- A sheet to count your edits
How it works
List the action types
Meeting reminders, follow-ups after no reply, sending materials you agreed to send, CRM updates after a call, first replies to new leads, and anything that mentions a price. Each type earns its freedom on its own.
Start everything in approval mode
Every action waits for a yes, an edit or a no. Make approving fast, with one tap in Slack and the draft right there, or the queue backs up and buyers wait.
Count your edits by type
Google Sheets: paste into A1, one row per action typeAction type Approved as is Edited Rejected Date of last edit or rejection Ready to run on its own? Meeting reminders 42 1 0 2026-10-01 =IF(TODAY()-E2>=14,"Yes","Not yet")
Switch one type at a time
After about two weeks with no edits, switch that type to automatic, and leave the rest in approval mode. If a type still gets edited, rewrite its instructions rather than editing every draft.
Keep some things human for good
Pricing, discounts, contract terms, new commitments, and anything going to a customer who’s upset. These never run on their own.
Spot-check what runs on its own
Read a sample of the automatic actions every week. One bad one, and that type goes back to approval mode until it earns its way out again.
What good looks like
You approve less every week, and nothing an agent did on its own has surprised you or a buyer.
An example, not a client story. After two weeks, meeting reminders and CRM updates after calls have had no edits, so they run on their own. Follow-up emails still get edited about one time in five, so they stay in approval mode, and their instructions get rewritten.
Mistakes to skip
- Turning a whole agent on at once.
- Approving without reading. Rubber-stamping is automatic mode with extra steps.
- Letting anything with a price in it run on its own.
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