Donald-Kihenja

Who They Are

Donald Kihenja is the group’s most technically ambitious member after Lou — a practitioner who builds first and reports back, often arriving to sessions with something already running. He authored the 77 Day Protocol (a structured personal methodology with its own website and custom book reader app), runs his own Claude Code + Obsidian knowledge vault, and experiments with local AI models alongside frontier ones. His characteristic move is to locate the precise tool or workflow that solves a concrete problem, then describe it with specificity that benefits less technical members. Donald has a multilingual background (Swahili, Spanish, English) and brings a cross-cultural sharpness to how he frames AI’s impact on professionals worldwide. His most frequently cited observation — that AI enables thinking, not just productivity — reframes how the whole group understands the highest-value use of AI.

Sessions

2026-04-09_Mastermind — Shared that he no longer works directly in Obsidian; uses Claude Code exclusively to interact with his vault. Noted that skills created mid-conversation aren’t available until the session restarts. Installed Fish-speech (voice cloning) and XTTS (open-source ElevenLabs equivalent) for free audio generation. Reacted to the LKB vault demo: “I didn’t know I had a ‘CIA’ (now AIMM) file.”
2026-04-16_Mastermind — Contributed the Zettelkasten discussion; shared Obsidian native search syntax (line:("...")) and the principle of letting Claude Code manage the linking. Linked relevant YouTube content on AI systems thinking.
2026-04-23_Mastermind — Active in chat commentary; contributed to the Code vs. Inference thread (Scott’s 90M records → 128K with Python + Gemini).
2026-04-30_Mastermind — Observed that the heartbeat is “like the system clock” for agents. Shared screenshots of the 77 Day Protocol website pages; had domain transfer from Cloudflare nearly complete.
2026-05-07_Mastermind — Gave Elizabeth a direct entry point into Obsidian + Claude Code (“no plugin needed, just switch to the vault folder and start chatting”). Offered the principle: “I let Claude Code sort the linking.” Second admin account tip: “That’s how I have my Linux set up.”
2026-05-21_Mastermind — Kept chat lively with multilingual asides (Swahili etymology, Spanish). Contributed to the brand-differentiation thread: “Take the hard road: differentiate yourself.”
2026-05-28_Mastermind — Built a custom Kindle-style book reader app using Opus for architecture and Codex for execution. “20–30 commits, all very well documented. For the first time I feel like a real programmer.” Credited the Superpowers methodology. Observation: “When you talk to Claude, assume it knows 10X more than you on any topic — that POV will guide your questions.”
2026-06-04_Mastermind — Ran Codex computer-use tasks against GoHighLevel in parallel with the session. “It’s clicking around, even the deepest menus. I felt like: now I really have an assistant.” Articulated the session’s deepest reflection on AI: “It’s not a feature. What AI enables me to do is think.”
2026-06-11_Mastermind — Voiced the AI displacement concern directly: “Right now I’m seeing how, as professionals in our own field, AI is almost replacing us in our knowledge domain.” This was one of the session’s most emotionally charged moments.

Characteristic Contributions

AI as a thinking companion — “It’s not a feature. What AI enables me to do is think. People think AI makes you not think. For me, it makes me think more and wider.” The clearest articulation of the thinking-partner frame in the vault.
Claude Code as the primary Obsidian interface — “I no longer work directly in Obsidian. I only use Claude Code since it’s so much more convenient — Claude Code interacts with my Obsidian vault so much better than me.” Immediately validated by other members and adopted as a standard recommendation.
Spec-driven implementation with cross-model QC — Opus plans the architecture; Codex executes; Claude reviews Codex’s code. 20–30 well-documented commits on a first real project. The workflow that made him “feel like a real programmer” for the first time.
Computer-use as API bypass — When GoHighLevel had no API for what he needed, he handed the task to Codex’s computer-use feature and let it navigate the UI. The model produced a full inventory of his GHL instance across multiple parallel sessions.
The 10X assumption — “When you talk to Claude, assume it knows 10X more than you on any topic — that POV will guide your questions.” A framing device for productive delegation vs. interrogation.
Session-restart diagnostic — If a newly created skill isn’t loading, restart the Claude Code session. Skills created mid-conversation aren’t available until the session reloads its context.
Cross-platform AI parity — Ran local open-source tools (Fish-speech, XTTS) alongside frontier models as practical alternatives for specific tasks (free voice cloning, free TTS). Not ideological — practical.

Insights They Are Quoted or Referenced In

Signature Quotes

“I no longer work directly in Obsidian. I only use Claude Code since it’s so much more convenient — Claude Code interacts with my Obsidian vault so much better than me.” — April 9, 2026

“It’s not a feature. What AI enables me to do is think. People think AI makes you not think. For me, it makes me think more and wider. Thinking companion. Stretches your mind.” — June 4, 2026

“When you talk to Claude, assume it knows 10X more than you on any topic — that POV will guide your questions.” — May 28, 2026

“For the first time I feel like a real programmer.” — May 28, 2026 (on 20–30 documented commits building his book reader app with Opus + Codex)

“Right now I’m seeing how, as professionals in our own field, AI is almost replacing us in our knowledge domain.” — June 11, 2026

“Take the hard road: differentiate yourself.” — May 21, 2026

PowerUp Coaching — Living Knowledge Base

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