We've always done it this way

The most dangerous phrase in business is, "We've always done it this way."

Have you ever had a moment where something small, something you’ve done a thousand times, suddenly hits you in a completely different way?

Let me tell you about mine.

I was sitting at my desk on a Tuesday afternoon.

Nothing dramatic.

No crisis.

Just me and another set of monthly accounts.

I opened the spreadsheet, the same one I’d been using forever, and started the familiar routine:

Export.

Reformat.

Fix the formulas.

Double check the totals.

Rewrite the notes.

Rerun the numbers because one line didn’t look right.

Stare at it again because you don’t trust the 15 tabs you’ve already reviewed.

And right there, in the middle of that loop, I stopped.

I took my hands off the keyboard and thought:

“Why am I still doing it like this? Why am I letting this eat six hours of my life every single month?”

It wasn’t the task.

It wasn’t the tools.

It wasn’t my skills.

It was habit.

It was familiarity.

It was that quiet voice whispering:

“We’ve always done it this way.”

And when I finally heard that voice clearly…

it changed everything.

Because once you realise an older version of you built the system you’re still using today you start asking better questions. You start seeing the cost of staying the same.

What about you. Pick one routine. The one you’ve done so long you don’t even question it anymore.

Now ask yourself, “If AI isn’t here to align with my workflow but to disrupt it, what’s the first routine that should disappear?”

And then ask yourself these three questions:

1. What problems need solving?

Where are you tolerating friction because it feels normal? Where are you giving hours to tasks that don’t deserve your time?

This question forces you to see what you’ve been accepting simply because you’ve always done it that way.

2. What's possible?

Picture walking into the bank and your manager hands you a card that says, “Unlimited budget. No restrictions on your spending this quarter.”

Imagine that for a second. No financial barrier. No “I can’t afford help.” No worrying about resources.

What would you build?

What systems would you upgrade?

What projects would you launch immediately?

You stop asking, “What do I have time for?” And you start asking, “What could I create if nothing was holding me back?”

3. What if expertise was unlimited?

Now let’s go one step further. Imagine getting a call from Dragon's Den. Steven Bartlett says, " I am funding you for the next twelve months, all your strategy and social media. The brightest students at Cambridge University, Oxford University and London School of Economics will be working for you, free. No cost at all.

On demand, 24/7. Imagine having that level of intelligence and research power behind your decisions. Imagine them analysing your pricing, building your strategies, reviewing your data, and helping you innovate.

What would you attempt if that team was behind you?

That’s the level AI puts within reach not because money becomes unlimited, but because capacity does.

What would you fix?

AI isn’t here to fit into your old way of working. It’s here to challenge everything you thought was fixed.

So let me ask you and say this out loud if you need to, “What’s the one routine I’m finally ready to rewrite before AI rewrites it for me?”

Tell me what comes to mind first