"Build Me X... Just Make It Work": How Not to Start Building with AI
Why Vague Prompts Fail, and the Only Framework You Need to Build Real Software with AI
What makes Vibe Coding skeptics sound convincing?
The influencers don’t help.
You’ve seen the videos. The viral demos. The too-good-to-be-true claims: “Watch me build a full-stack app without writing a single line of code.” They type a prompt like, “Build me something like x with features x,y, and z…just make it work,” and the screen floods with code.
To someone non-technical, it looks like magic. To someone just starting out, it looks doable.
But then you try it yourself, and the AI fails to deliver.
This is the trap, and it's why most people fail at Vibe Coding before they even begin, if not outright dismiss it without recognising its potential.
"Just Make It Work" Is Not a Strategy
If you're a traditionally trained developer, you probably don’t fall into this. You already think in terms of data, flows, logic, and structure. Prompting AI just feels like accelerating what you already know how to do manually.
But for complete newcomers? It’s bewildering.
They give their agency away. They prompt like spectators. They start with a fuzzy idea, add some surface-level instructions, and then ask the AI to "just make it work" — as if it can guess the intent behind an entire product.
Here’s the reality:
AI can build apps. But you still have to describe what you want in enough clarity for it to scaffold something real.
That means structure. That means flow. That means logic.
And that’s where everything breaks down for beginners.
Yes, AI Can Build Real Products
Let’s be clear: the dream is real.
AI is now capable of building digital products. You can use natural language to scaffold layouts, data models, user flows, and even connect APIs without writing a single line of code.
Despite what the skeptics say, Vibe Coding—using AI to build software through natural language prompting—is not a fad.
Actually, Garry Tan, CEO of Y Combinator, the largest accelerator with many billion-dollar unicorns to its name, has said:
“Vibe Coding will be the dominant way to code and it is here to stay.”
The shift is already underway.
But here’s the part nobody tells you:
Most of the tools are still janky. Most outputs are mid. Most people quit too early.
Why? They lack a mental model for guiding the AI.
A Better Way to Start: The Progressive Scaffolding Framework
After 800+ hours of hands-on Vibe Coding since March, building with Cursor, Github Copilot, Replit, Bolt, and Lovable, I came to a simple conclusion:
The difference between frustration and progress isn’t a better tool. It’s a better way to think.
So I built one.
It’s called the Progressive Scaffolding Framework (I know it is a mouthful, but hey, it does the job.) And it’s the mental model I trust when building anything with AI.
Instead of starting with vague prompts or mockups, PSF teaches you to visualize what you’re building in five composable layers:
Level 1: Vocabulary — Learn the atoms of the modern web. If you can’t name them, you can’t prompt them.
Level 2: Vibe Units — Think in reusable blocks like hero section, auth, content display, pricing.
Level 3: Flow Chains — Define what happens, when, and why. This is how your app behaves.
Level 4: Page Scaffolds — Compose full-screen layouts from blocks and flows.
Level 5: App Scaffold — Zoom out to the full product blueprint—pages, navigation, states.
This framework becomes your internal compass. It gives shape to ideas before you prompt. It helps you guide the AI with precision, not just hope.
One Prompt to Vibe Code Them All
Once you understand the five levels of the Progressive Scaffolding Framework (PSF), you don’t need to prompt from scratch.
That’s where the One Prompt Template comes in—a structured, 9-field format that helps you describe logic, layout, data, and behavior with clarity that AI tools can work with.
This isn’t a feature checklist. It’s a creative blueprint. A full-stack scaffold written in structured natural language.
The prompt walks you through:
Your core idea and who it’s for
How your screens are laid out
What users can do and what happens next
What gets stored, and what connects to external services
The tone and vibe of the experience
And any smart AI features to include
It finishes with clear build instructions, so you don’t just get a prototype—you get scaffolded code with separation of concerns.
You don’t need 100 prompts. All you have to do is make sure that you have got these checklists covered.
You need one you can remix, reuse, and evolve.
That’s the One Prompt.
Don’t Just Say “Make It Work.” Start with the Right Mental Model
If you’ve been struggling to get AI to build what you want, this is your way out.
Don’t give your agency to the tool by saying, “just make it work.”
Take it back.
Learn to prompt like a product thinker.
Inside the Vibe Coding Prompt Kit, I give you both:
The full Progressive Scaffolding Framework to rewire how you think.
The One Prompt Template to structure how you build.
Practical guides on how to use them both.
Both are designed to help you move from:
“Build me something. Just make it work.”
To:
“Here’s exactly what I want. Let’s build it together.”
👇 Start here:
Get the Vibe Coding Prompt Kit