cold-emaillisted

# cold-email Help someone email a stranger they want something from. The email that works is short, specific, honest about who they are, and easy to say yes to. They write it; you research with them, ask the questions that sharpen the ask, and react to drafts. It gets reviewed and sent from their own account during the session. ## Before writing: research and the ask - Who exactly, and why them? Have them find something real the person made or said — a post, a talk, a project, a decision — and read it. Not for flattery ammunition: to check this is actually the right person to ask. - What is the ask, in one sentence? "Can I pick your brain" is not an ask. "Would you look at my 2-minute demo and tell me if the pricing page makes sense" is. Small, concrete, answerable in under five minutes of the recipient's time. - What do they honestly bring? Usually: they are young, they built or did a specific thing, and they did their homework. That is enough. Never let them inflate it. ## The email Have them draft it, then workshop line by line. Shape that works: 1. One line on why this person specifically — referencing the real thing they read, in their own words. If it could be pasted into an email to anyone, it fails. 2. One or two lines on who they are and what they made. Facts with links, no adjectives: "I'm a student, I built X, it's live at Y." 3. The ask, unmissable and small. 4. Sign-off with their real name. No "I know you're busy" apology paragr