Exercise 4: Break It Intentionally (15 minutes)
Once the workflow runs successfully, deliberately introduce an error and fix it.
What to do: 1. Go back to the weather API step 2. Change the URL to something wrong (add garbage characters, or change a number) 3. Run the workflow 4. Watch what happens in the execution history - What error appears? - Which step fails? - Does the email get sent? 5. Look at the error message and understand what went wrong 6. Fix the URL back to the correct one 7. Run the workflow again—it should work
What to write down: - What error message did you see? - How did you know which step was failing? - What did you learn from this about how Make/n8n handles errors?
Why: Seeing errors in a controlled way (where you created them) makes you less afraid of real errors. You learn how to read error messages and trace problems.
Module Deliverable: Document Your Morning Brief
You've built a working workflow. Now document it. Create a file or document with these elements:
1. Screenshot of the Workflow Canvas
Take a screenshot of your full workflow on the canvas. Show: - The schedule trigger - All the action steps - The connections between them
Paste this image into your deliverable document.
2. Screenshot of a Successful Execution
Run the workflow and take a screenshot of the execution history showing: - The workflow ran successfully - The timestamp - All steps completed
Paste this image into your deliverable document.
3. Evidence of the Email
Show proof that the email was actually sent and received. Either: - A screenshot of the email in your inbox - Or a screenshot of the Gmail/email module showing the sent email
Paste this into your deliverable document.
4. Workflow Description
Write a brief paragraph describing: - What your workflow does (trigger, actions, output) - What data it fetches and how often - Why you chose this data (why is weather useful to you in the morning?)
Example:
My Morning Brief workflow runs every morning at 7am. It fetches the current weather
for San Francisco using the Open-Meteo API, formats it into a readable email, and
sends it to my inbox. The email includes temperature, wind speed, and weather
conditions. I chose weather because it helps me decide what to wear and plan my day.
5. Notes on What Broke and How You Fixed It
During the build, something probably broke or didn't work as expected. Write down: - What was the problem? - How did you find out (what error did you see, or what was wrong with the output)? - How did you fix it? - What did you learn?
Example:
Problem: The email was sending, but the body was empty.
How I found it: I checked the email in my inbox and saw nothing in the body.
Fix: I looked at the data mapping in the email step and realized I hadn't mapped
the formatted text. I clicked the Body field and selected the output from the
formatter step.
Learning: Always test each step individually, not just the whole workflow. The
formatter step was working, but I wasn't using its output correctly.
How to Submit
Create a document (Google Doc, Word file, Markdown, or even just copy-paste into a form) containing all 5 elements above. This is your proof of completion for Module 2.
You're Done With Module 2
You've learned how workflows work. You've built one. It runs. Every morning at 7am, you get a summary without doing anything.
That's automation.
Bridge to Module 3
Right now, your Morning Brief sends you raw weather data. It's useful, but it's not smart. It doesn't understand your life—what matters to you, what's worth your attention.
In Module 3, you'll add an AI step to the workflow. The AI will read the weather data and write a summary that's actually useful: "It's going to be cold—bring a jacket" instead of just "Temperature: 35°F."
Your workflows will start thinking for you.
But first, rest. You built something real. That's the hardest part.
Module 3 coming next: Integrating AI into your workflows to transform raw data into genuine intelligence.