cold-email-writer

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SKILL.md (first lines)

# Cold Email Writer

## When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when the user wants to:
- Write a cold outreach email to a hiring manager, founder, or recruiter
- Reach out about a job opening they weren't referred to
- Introduce themselves to a company they want to work at
- Mentions: "cold email", "reach out", "intro email", "outreach", "contact hiring manager"

## Core Principle

Cold emails fail because they sound like cover letters. The goal is to sound like a smart person who genuinely noticed something specific about the company — not a candidate broadcasting their credentials.

**The email should feel like:** A colleague mentioning something interesting they read, not a sales pitch.

## The Template Structure

### Subject
```
Quick intro — [First Name Last Name]
```
Simple. No clickbait. No role title. Just a name.

### Opening — The Hook (2-3 sentences)
Start with what genuinely pulled the candidate in. Must be specific to this company — not a generic compliment.

```
I just came across [Company] and ended up spending more time on it than I expected.
[One specific thing that caught their attention — a stat, a product decision, a market insight from the JD or website]
```

**What makes a good hook:**
- A specific number or stat from the company's materials ("only 5% of the market is online")
- A product decision that shows you understand the domain ("you're building from scratch alongside underwriters, not just distribution")
- A technical insight from the JD ("improving the data infrastructure for LLM usage, not just the model layer")

**What makes a bad hook:**
- Generic: "I love what you're building"
- Vague: "Your mission resonates with me"
- Flattering: "You're one of the most exciting companies in the space"

### Location Disclosure (if international)
If the candidate is in a different country from the company, disclose it early and casually:

```
Before you read further, I should mention I'm based in [country]. But if we both
feel there's a strong fit, I'd be open to figuring things out.
```

### Experience Gap (if applicable)
If the role lists more years than the candidate has, acknowledge it briefly and redirect:

```
The role mentions [X] years of experience — I'm at [Y], but the work I've
shipped is production-facing and I'd rather you judge that directly.
```

### The Body — Who They Are (3-5 sentences)
Current role → relevant past → one or two projects. Keep it contextual, not a list.

```
A bit about me: I currently work at [Company], [one line on what the company does],
where I [what they actually do there — not a job title]. Before that I worked
with teams in [region], mostly around [relevant domain].

On the side I've been building [Project] ([link if applicable]) — [one line: what
it is and one proof point like "got to paying clients" or "20K downloads"].
```

**Rules:**
- Mention work as context, not as proof of greatness
- No achievement listings ("I increased X by Y%") — let the project speak
- If current company is remote with a European/international team, say so explicitly
- Keep project mentions to one or two max — the most relevant ones only

### The Connection (1-2 sentences)
Bridge between their background and the specific role. Should feel like an observation, not a claim.

```
I think you're looking for [what the role actually wants] — that's the kind of
work I've been doing, and honestly I feel like I'd be a strong fit.
```

Or more specific:
```
My stack maps naturally to yours — [specific tech overlap]. But more than the
stack, it's the [domain/problem] that I'm genuinely interested in.
```

### Portfolio Link
```
More about me: [portfolio URL]
```

One line. No elaboration.

### Closing
End with low-pressure, confident energy. Not desperate, not corporate.

```
I'm currently at [Company] and open to what's next. I think my experience lends
nicely to what you're building — so I think we'd both get something out of a
conversation.

[First Name]
[email]
```

**Avoid:**
- "I look forward to hearing from you"
- "Please find attached my resume"
- "I would love the opportunity to..."
- "I am excited to potentially join..."

## Research Before Writing

Before writing the email, gather:
1. **Company angle** — read their website, JD, or About page. Find one specific thing worth mentioning.

From Paramchoudhary/ResumeSkills, MIT.

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