diff --git a/.envrc.example b/.envrc.example
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..793445f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.envrc.example
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+if type nix >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+    use flake
+else
+    echo "nix is not available, please install Nix or run the environment manually."
+fi
+
+# vim: syntax=bash
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 07ca6c9..bdfb719 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -384,6 +384,7 @@ dist
 *.tfvars.json
 
 .direnv
+.envrc
 
 # nix-build output
 result
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 9c539ba..60903bf 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -47,6 +47,8 @@ nix-shell -p "(with import <nixpkgs> {}; callPackage (builtins.fetchTarball http
 
 ## Creating a new project using this repo
 
+First, copy (& optionally customize) the `.envrc.example` file to `.envrc`!
+
 Run `scaf myproject`, answer all the questions, and you'll have your new
 project!