Set up Claude in one day (the 5 things to do first)
Hey, it's Cindy 🌱 This is the full setup from the reel. Here are the five things to set up first, in order, from the foundation up to full automation.
btw the waitlist for AI System Club is now open! If you're keen on using AI to automate your content, video editing, job search, business or build AI agents, feel free to sign up (only if you want to hehe). Ps. the waitlist gets first dibs:)
Quick honesty check before you start. The first four steps live in the Claude app under the Customize menu and in Projects. A couple of them (Projects, and some connectors) want a paid plan, and the true set-and-forget scheduled task in step five is easiest in Claude Code. I flag the free path at every step, so nothing surprises you.
the 5 setup steps
From chatbot to system
🧠 Give it your context in a Project. Create a Project and drop in who you are, your goals, your voice, and what you're working on. Every chat you start inside that Project inherits it, so you stop re-explaining yourself. This is also the reliable, all-plans way to make Claude "remember" you: keep related work in one Project or one ongoing chat rather than hoping it recalls old conversations. (Projects sits on the paid plans. On free, paste a short context block at the top of one long-running chat and work there.)
🔌 Connect one app you actually use. Open Customize, then Connectors, and add one: your calendar, Gmail, or Notion. Now Claude can act on your real stuff, check your day, read an email, pull a doc, instead of only talking about it. Start with the single app you touch most. (Anything not in the gallery: add a custom connector by pasting its URL.)
⌨️ Turn your repeat prompts into a command. The prompt you retype every week should be one shortcut. In Claude Code you save it as a custom slash command (a small file in your .claude/commands folder), then type /yourcommand any time. On claude.ai, get the same effect by saving that prompt inside a Project's instructions, so it's pre-loaded the moment you open that Project.
✨ Create one reusable skill. A skill teaches Claude to do a task your way every single time. Open Customize, then Skills, then Add, and either write the instructions, upload a skill, or let Claude build one with you. Now "make me a deck" or "write this in my voice" comes out consistent, not different every time. Hit Browse to grab ready-made ones from the gallery too.
⏰ Set up a scheduled task. The final upgrade: Claude does something on a timer without you asking, like a 9am morning brief. In Claude Code you set this up as a scheduled routine that runs on a cron schedule. Not a coder yet? Trigger the same thing from a free no-code scheduler like Make.com. This is the step that turns Claude from "a thing I open" into "a thing that runs for me".
make step 1 count
The context prompt that does the heavy lifting
Step one carries the other four, so give your Project real context instead of one vague line. Paste this in and answer it once, then keep the result forever.
🧠 set up your Project context
I'm setting you up as my ongoing assistant inside a Project. Interview me to build a context file: ask me, a few questions at a time, about who I am, what I do, my current goals, my writing voice, the tools I use, and the tasks I'll bring you most.
When we're done, write it all up as a tight "about me and how to help me" brief I can paste into this Project's instructions, so every future chat already knows me without me repeating myself.
the gaps
Why your Claude still feels basic
No Project Every chat starts from zero, so Claude never learns your context. This is the number one reason it feels generic.
Zero connectors Claude can only talk, not do. One connector (your calendar or inbox) is the jump from chatbot to assistant.
Re-typing prompts If you paste the same instructions every week, that's a command or a skill you haven't built yet.
Nothing on a timer Everything is you-initiated. One scheduled task and Claude starts working while you sleep.
You don't have to do all five today. Even step one, a Project with your context, changes how good Claude feels immediately. Add the next one tomorrow. A week from now it will feel like a completely different tool, because it basically is.
the waitlist is now open
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btw this list gets first dibs the moment doors open :)