Your path and your tools
Read the video transcript
Lesson 0.3. When you can see the whole road, every step makes sense. In this lesson you'll see the three stages, the two real projects you'll build, and what every tool is for, and when you'll meet it.
The course has three stages.
Stage 1: build it. You set up your tools, learn the prompt system, and build your first website. By the end of your first weekend, it's live on the internet.
Stage 2: make it work. This is the heart of the course. You learn to read the code AI writes, fix things when they break, and build the back end: a database, forms, emails, logins, an admin dashboard, and security, so your site is safe. Students in the live classes found this the hardest part, so we take it slowly.
Stage 3: get paid. You put your work on your own domain, get it found on Google, and use the client system to win clients, price your work, and keep them paying.
You'll build two real websites. Project 1 is your own web design business website: your portfolio, your credibility, and later, your way to be found on Google. Project 2 is a real client business website, with orders saved to a database, emails to the owner, and an admin dashboard. It becomes your demo, the sample you show to businesses when you pitch them.
And you won't meet every tool at once. In Module 1 you set up five: Gmail, GitHub, ChatGPT, Vercel and Cursor. Next.js and Tailwind come in Module 2. Supabase, for your database, in Module 7. Resend, for emails, in Module 8. Cloudflare, to protect your site, in Module 10. And Hostinger and Google Search Console, in Module 12.
The only thing you pay for in the whole course is a domain name, and only when you're ready to launch. Everything else works on free plans while you learn.
Here's how they connect. You plan with ChatGPT. Cursor builds the files on your laptop. You save them to GitHub. Vercel takes them from GitHub and puts them online, and updates your live site every time you push new changes. People reach it through your domain. And behind the scenes, Supabase stores your data, and Resend sends your emails. You'll come back to this picture many times.
And one thing to look forward to. Later in the course you'll connect Cursor directly to your tools, using something called MCP. Then, instead of clicking through dashboards, you tell Cursor in a sentence, and it builds your database, sets up your domain, or switches on your security, for you. Safety rules first, of course.
Now, make the path yours. Start a builder's notebook, on paper or on your laptop. Write today's date, and answer three questions. Why am I doing this? Who is the first business I'd like to build a website for? And when will I study? Pick real days and times.
You can now describe the whole journey, say what each tool does and when you'll meet it, and you have your notebook ready. One more lesson before we build: how to study, and what to do the moment you get stuck.
See the whole journey from zero to paid: the 3 stages, the 2 projects you'll build, and what every tool in the course is for.
Why this matters
When you can see the whole road, each step makes sense. You'll know why you're creating a GitHub account before you write any code, why the database waits until Stage 2, and why the course ends with getting clients rather than with code.
You'll also see that you won't meet every tool at once. Many beginners give up after being told to create nine accounts on day one. Here, you'll set up only what you need, exactly when you need it.
The idea in plain English
Three stages
Stage 1 · Build it (Modules 0–3) You set up your tools, learn the prompt system, and build your first website. By the end of your first weekend, it's live on the internet with its own link you can share.
Stage 2 · Make it work (Modules 4–11) This is the heart of the course. You learn to read the code AI writes, fix things when they break, and build the back end: a database, forms, emails, logins and an admin dashboard. Students in the live classes found this part the hardest, so this stage goes slowly, explains things with pictures, and gives you a ready-made prompt for every step.
Stage 3 · Get paid (Modules 12–14) You put your work on your own domain, get it found on Google, and use the four-channel client system to win clients, price your work and keep them paying.
Two projects
You'll build two real websites. Not exercises: real sites you'll use.
Project 1 · Your own web design business website (Module 3) Your first build is your business. It's your portfolio, it gives you credibility, and in Stage 3 you'll set it up to appear on Google when people search for "website designer in [your city]". You finish Stage 1 with a business presence, not just a practice page.
Project 2 · A real client business website (Module 11) A website for a restaurant, salon or shop. Customers place orders or bookings, the orders are saved to a database, the owner gets an email for each one, and the owner has a private dashboard to manage them. This is exactly the kind of website businesses pay for, and it becomes your demo: the sample you'll customise and show to real businesses when you pitch them.
Your tools, and when you'll meet them
| Tool | What it does | Like… | You'll meet it in | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gmail | Your professional email; you'll sign in to most tools with it | Your ID card | Module 1 | Free |
| GitHub | Stores your code safely and keeps every version | A safe with a time machine | Module 1 | Free |
| ChatGPT | Planning, writing briefs and copy, making images | Your architect's desk | Module 1 | Free plan |
| Vercel | Puts your website on the internet | Your landlord: rents you space on a server | Module 1 | Free plan |
| Cursor | The code editor where the AI builds your website | Your building site | Module 1 | Free plan (paid plan optional) |
| Next.js + Tailwind | The ready-made foundation and styling system Cursor builds with | A house's frame and paint system | Module 2 | Free |
| Supabase | Your database and logins | A very organised filing cabinet with a lock | Module 7 | Free plan |
| Resend | Sends emails from your website | Your website's post office | Module 8 | Free plan |
| Hostinger | Where you buy your domain name | The shop sign | Module 12 | A domain costs a small yearly fee |
| Cloudflare | Runs your DNS and protects your site and forms from bots and spam | The security guard at the door | Modules 10 and 12 | Free plan |
| Google Search Console | Helps Google find and show your site | Registering your shop in the directory | Module 12 | Free |
How the tools connect
Read the diagram from left to right:
- You plan in ChatGPT and write prompts in Cursor.
- Cursor builds the website files on your laptop.
- You save the files to GitHub.
- Vercel takes the files from GitHub and puts them online. Every time you save new changes to GitHub, Vercel updates your live website automatically.
- People reach it through your domain.
- Behind the scenes, Supabase stores your data and Resend sends your emails.
You don't need to remember this now. You'll come back to this picture many times, and each time more of it will feel familiar.
MCP: giving the AI hands (a preview)
In Stage 2 and Stage 3 you'll learn something most beginner courses don't teach: connecting Cursor directly to your tools using MCP. With MCP, instead of clicking through the Supabase dashboard to create a database, you tell Cursor in a sentence and it does it for you. The same goes for buying your domain at Hostinger and setting up its DNS and security at Cloudflare.
It's powerful, which is why you'll learn the safety rules first. For now, just know it's coming.
Try it
Make the path yours.
- Get a notebook, or open a note on your phone or laptop. This becomes your builder's notebook for the whole course.
- Write today's date and: "Day 1. Starting from zero."
- Answer these three questions in it:
- Why am I doing this? (A job? Clients? My own business? Something else?)
- Who is the first business I'd like to build a website for? (A relative's shop, your church, a friend's salon…)
- When will I study? (Pick days and times, for example "Tuesday and Thursday 7–8pm, Saturday morning".)
- Keep the notebook. You'll write your progress, your prompts that worked and your questions in it as you go.
Check it worked
Quick check
What you can do now
- Describe the whole journey from zero to paid
- Explain what each tool does and when you'll meet it
- Point to your builder's notebook with your reason, your first business and your study times
Next: 0.4 · How to learn here and never stay stuck. One last lesson before you start building: how to study, and what to do the moment something goes wrong.