Email Assistant Prompt Set

Prompts for the inbox, built around one rule: AI drafts, you send. Never wire AI directly to the send button.

Triage

The morning sort

Here are the subject lines and first lines from my unread mail:
[PASTE]

Sort into four buckets:
1. Needs a reply from me personally
2. Needs an action but not a reply
3. Read later
4. Ignore

For bucket 1, add a one-line note on what the reply needs to achieve.
Do not draft anything yet.

The thread catch-up

Here is a long thread I have been copied into:
[PASTE]

1. What is actually being decided?
2. Where do the participants disagree, and on what exactly?
3. What, if anything, is being asked of me?
4. What has been agreed that someone might later dispute?

Under 150 words.

The hidden problem

Read this thread and tell me what is NOT being said.
Is there tension, an unstated objection, or someone quietly disagreeing?
Quote the specific lines that suggest it.

Drafting

The standard reply

Reply to this email:
[PASTE]

Outcome I want: [WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN NEXT]
Relationship: [COLLEAGUE / CLIENT / SUPPLIER / MANAGER]
Tone: [WARM / NEUTRAL / FIRM]
Length: under [N] words

Do not apologise unless I am at fault. Do not over-explain.
End with one clear next step.

The one you have been avoiding

I have not replied to this for [TIME]:
[PASTE]

Draft a reply that acknowledges the delay once, without grovelling,
and moves straight to substance. Under 100 words.

The bad news

I need to tell [WHO] that [BAD NEWS].
Cause: [WHY IT HAPPENED — for your context, not necessarily theirs]
What I am doing about it: [REMEDY]
What I need from them: [IF ANYTHING]

Structure: the news first, then the remedy, then the ask.
No burying it in paragraph three. No "unfortunately" more than once.

The follow-up that is not annoying

I sent this [TIME] ago and heard nothing:
[PASTE ORIGINAL]

Write a follow-up that gives them a reason to reply now.
Do not use "just checking in", "circling back", "bumping this",
or "I wanted to follow up". Under 80 words.

The introduction

Introduce [PERSON A] to [PERSON B].
A does: [WHAT] and needs: [WHAT]
B does: [WHAT] and might offer: [WHAT]
Why this is worth both their time: [REASON]

Short. Make the value obvious to both in the first two lines.
Include a clear "over to you both".

Difficult mail

The de-escalation

Here is an angry email:
[PASTE]

First, tell me: what are they actually upset about, as opposed to what
they are shouting about? What do they want?

Then draft a reply that:
- names the specific problem, not "any inconvenience"
- says what I will do and by when
- does not admit fault I have not established
- does not match their tone

The boundary

I need to decline [REQUEST] from [WHO].
What I cannot do: [CONSTRAINT]
What I can offer instead, if anything: [ALTERNATIVE]
Relationship to preserve: [DESCRIBE]

Three versions: warm, neutral, final. Under 80 words each.
Do not explain more than one reason — extra reasons invite negotiation.

The correction

Someone has stated something incorrect in a group thread:
[PASTE]

Draft a correction that is unambiguous about the facts and generous
about the person. Do not use "I think" to soften a fact.

Recurring mail

Build a reusable template

I answer this kind of email [N] times a week:
[PASTE 3 REAL EXAMPLES AND MY REPLIES]

Extract the pattern. Produce a reusable template with [PLACEHOLDERS]
for the parts that change. Then list the variations I should keep
separate rather than templating.

The signature set

Write four email signatures for me:
1. Full — new contacts and external formal
2. Short — ongoing threads
3. Meeting-focused — includes booking link
4. Out of office — [DATES], [WHO COVERS]

Details: [NAME, ROLE, COMPANY, PHONE, LINKS]
No inspirational quote. No confidentiality boilerplate unless I ask.

Quality control

Before any AI-drafted mail goes out:

• Every fact, name, date and number is one I verified
• No commitment I cannot keep — dates, discounts, outcomes
• It sounds like me, not like an assistant
• Nothing apologises for something I did not do
• The ask is clear and there is exactly one
• If it is difficult mail, I have read it once more an hour later

The automation line

Safe to automate: sorting, labelling, summarising, drafting into your Drafts folder, alerting you to something urgent.

Not safe to automate: sending. A misclassified sentiment on an auto-sent reply reaches a real customer and cannot be recalled. The draft-first rule is what makes the rest of it safe.