Antoine Wade, a tech sales professional based in San Antonio, has transformed his workflow using AI tools since ChatGPT’s launch in 2022, but he’s strategically keeping his most effective techniques under wraps to maintain a competitive advantage in the cutthroat sales industry.
Wade initially adopted ChatGPT to craft personalized cold outreach emails for potential clients, a core component of his tech sales role. The technology proved so transformative that he expanded its use beyond work, leveraging AI for coaching youth sports, communicating with parents, building schedules, and even personal tasks like learning to install air conditioners and helping his son with 6th-grade math. Tasks that previously took days now take minutes, he reports.
Today, Wade employs a diverse AI toolkit tailored to specific needs: Claude for business communication and content generation, Perplexity for deep research, and Gemini for image generation. His company has also provided access to AI-powered sales tools like Salesforce Sales Navigator, which can identify prospects most likely to need his products, making outreach significantly more targeted and effective.
While Wade credits AI with expanding his sales pipeline and improving customer understanding, he emphasizes that AI hasn’t directly closed deals—relationship-building remains his responsibility. However, the enhanced data insights and messaging capabilities have allowed him to reach more clients and communicate more effectively, ultimately increasing his earnings.
The competitive nature of sales has led Wade to develop what he calls his “secret sauce"—proprietary prompt engineering techniques and automation workflows that give him an edge. Though he’s invested considerable time learning prompt engineering and AI optimization, he’s selective about sharing these insights. While Wade openly acknowledges using AI when asked, he reserves detailed discussions about his methods for close friends and trusted colleagues from whom he can also learn.
Wade’s approach reflects a broader tension in the workplace: as AI becomes ubiquitous, individual expertise in leveraging these tools becomes a differentiator. In sales, where competition is fierce and commissions are on the line, professionals like Wade are treating their AI proficiency as proprietary knowledge rather than shared best practices.
Key Quotes
Tasks that used to take me days took me literal minutes.
Wade describes the dramatic productivity gains he experienced after adopting AI tools for both professional sales work and personal tasks like sports coaching, illustrating the transformative time-saving potential of AI automation.
If I’m creating prompts that give me a better message, which leads to a better outcome, I may not share it with others because I want to see if it works and if it’s going to give me a competitive advantage.
Wade explains his strategic decision to keep his most effective AI techniques confidential, treating prompt engineering expertise as proprietary knowledge that provides him an edge over colleagues in the competitive sales environment.
AI hasn’t helped me close deals — I’m the one that’s built those relationships with customers — but I’ve seen an increase in my pipeline because I’m able to reach more clients with the data and messaging.
Wade clarifies AI’s role in his sales process, emphasizing that while the technology enhances efficiency and outreach, human relationship-building remains essential for actually closing deals and generating revenue.
Sales is very competitive and while companies are choosing to have conversations around AI, some people may not be as comfortable sharing how they’re leveraging it because that may be their competitive advantage.
Wade reveals a broader workplace trend where employees are reluctant to share AI best practices with colleagues due to the competitive nature of commission-based roles, suggesting knowledge hoarding may become more common as AI proficiency becomes a differentiator.
Our Take
Wade’s story exposes an uncomfortable truth about AI democratization: equal access doesn’t guarantee equal outcomes. His “secret sauce” approach reveals how AI is creating a new skills hierarchy where prompt engineering expertise becomes as valuable as traditional professional competencies. This raises important questions about workplace culture in the AI era. While Wade’s competitive instinct is understandable in commission-based sales, widespread knowledge hoarding could slow organizational AI adoption and create toxic dynamics. Companies need to balance individual incentives with collective learning, perhaps through recognition systems that reward both AI innovation and knowledge sharing. Wade’s experience also validates concerns about AI widening workplace inequality—those who invest time mastering these tools will increasingly outperform peers, potentially creating performance gaps that traditional training can’t bridge. His candid admission that he limits sharing suggests many workers are quietly leveraging AI advantages without broadcasting their methods, making the technology’s workplace impact harder for organizations to measure and manage.
Why This Matters
This story reveals a critical emerging dynamic in the AI-powered workplace: as AI tools become democratized and widely accessible, competitive advantage is shifting from tool access to expertise in using those tools effectively. Wade’s strategic secrecy around his AI techniques highlights how prompt engineering and AI optimization are becoming valuable professional skills that workers are treating as intellectual property.
The implications extend beyond sales. As AI augments knowledge work across industries, employees who invest time mastering these tools may create performance gaps with colleagues using the same technology less effectively. This could accelerate workplace inequality and create new tensions around knowledge sharing versus individual advancement.
For businesses, Wade’s story underscores the importance of formal AI training programs rather than assuming employees will naturally adopt tools optimally. Companies that fail to systematically upskill their workforce may see widening performance disparities. The competitive hoarding of AI techniques also suggests organizations need to foster cultures of collaboration around AI adoption, or risk creating siloed expertise that doesn’t benefit the broader team. Wade’s experience demonstrates that in the AI era, how you use the technology matters as much as having access to it.
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-sales-worker-explains-why-he-limits-details-about-ai-2025-12