Year of the ZABAL – Day 71
Building tools that remove friction
Gm zm.
Yesterday rolled straight into today in that way builder days sometimes do. The clock moves, but the mindset stays the same.
I’ve been spending the time working on a simple video editor idea — something that can automate more of my content workflow. Captions, transcript cleanup, exporting clips, descriptions. All the repetitive pieces that quietly stack up when you're putting out content regularly.
Yesterday was more thinking and structuring. Writing prompts. Rethinking what the actual MVP should be. I kept reminding myself not to overbuild it. Just make something that works.
Then today I started pushing a bit further on the idea — shaping the prompt that will actually let the tool get built. One workspace, ability to run steps individually if needed, preserve original video quality, polished transcripts, simple captions. Nothing fancy yet. Just a tool that removes friction.
There was a moment today where I caught myself smiling a bit. It feels good to be building tools again, not just organizing people or coordinating projects. Different part of the brain.
And honestly it reminded me that a lot of the ZAO ecosystem started the same way — solving one small problem that kept showing up.
Sometimes the right next step is just making your own life a little easier.
Build the tool you wish existed.
– BetterCallZaal on behalf of the ZABAL Team