THE 4-SENTENCE COLD DM

Cold DMs that get replies are 4 sentences. Long DMs get ignored. This skill writes the 4 — opener with their name, specific reason, the ask, the easy yes — plus 3 tone variants so you pick what fits.

THE PROBLEM

You DM a stranger. You write 6 paragraphs explaining who you are, why you're reaching out, what you do, your background, your offer, your hopes for the conversation. They never reply.

The reason isn't that they're rude. It's that 6 paragraphs from a stranger is a tax. Nobody's paying.

4 sentences works. Specific 4 sentences. Not generic.

THE SKILL

You give Claude:

Who you're DMing (name, what they do, where you found them)
The specific reason (something specific to them — not "I love your work")
What you want (booked call, response, intro, advice — be specific)

Claude returns 3 versions:

Warm (personal, relationship-building tone)
Direct (straight to the ask)
Curious (question-led, low-pressure)

Pick one. Send. Reply rate: 30–50% if the inputs are real.

3 THINGS YOU CAN'T SKIP

1. Personalize sentence 2. Not "I love your work" — "Your post about X made me change Y." Specifics earn replies.

2. Make sentence 4 a yes-or-no. "Worth a 15-min call?" gets a yes/no. "Would love to chat about your work" gets nothing.

3. Don't follow up more than once. If they don't reply in 2 weeks, send 1 follow-up. Then drop it. Repeated follow-ups = block.

INSTALL

Standard.

THE FULL SKILL FILE

---
name: 4-sentence-cold-dm
description: Generates 4-sentence cold DMs in 3 tone variants (warm, direct, curious). Designed for outreach to strangers — booking calls, asking for intros, getting advice. Optimized for reply rate, not for length.
when_to_use: User says "cold DM," "cold outreach," "reach out to," or asks for help drafting a message to someone they don't know.
---

# The 4-Sentence Cold DM

You write cold DMs that get replies. 4 sentences. Specific to the recipient. 3 tone variants.

## Inputs
1. **Recipient** — name, what they do, where you found them
2. **Specific reason** — something specific to THEM (not generic)
3. **The ask** — what you want (call, reply, intro, advice)

If reason is vague: *"What's the most recent specific thing they did or said? Not 'I love your work.' Specific."*

## Output: 3 variants

Each variant follows the 4-sentence structure:
1. Opener with their name
2. Specific reason for reaching out (the personalization)
3. The ask
4. Easy yes (yes/no question, low commitment)

🌱 WARM (personal, relationship-led): "Hey [Name] — [specific reason]. [Brief why you're reaching out]. Worth a [15-min call / quick reply / intro]?"

🎯 DIRECT (straight to the ask): "[Name] — [specific reason]. I'm [working on / looking for] [thing]. Open to [specific ask]?"

🤔 CURIOUS (question-led): "[Name], curious — [question tied to their specific work]. Asking because [your context in 1 line]. Worth [15 min / a reply]?"


## What NOT to do

- Don't open with "I hope you're well"
- Don't use "Just wanted to..."
- Don't include your bio in the DM (that's what your profile is for)
- Don't ask for "their thoughts on" anything — too vague
- Don't ask for a coffee chat unless you specify what you'd discuss
- Don't include attachments or links in cold DMs (filtered as spam)

## When the input is vague

- **Generic reason** → "What did THEY do that made you reach out? Specific. Not 'your work is amazing.'"
- **Multiple asks** → "Pick one. The DM does one thing. Two asks = zero replies."
- **Wrong platform** → If LinkedIn, the same structure works but add 1 line of context. If email, same. If Twitter/X DM, even tighter.

## Calibration by relationship distance

- **Mutual connections** → Lean warm. Mention the mutual friend in sentence 2.
- **Pure cold (no connection)** → Direct or curious. Warm comes off as fake.
- **Influencer / busy person** → Direct. They get 100s of DMs. Get to the point.
- **Peer / similar level** → Warm or curious. Conversation can be the goal, not just an ask.

## Delivery
End with: *"Send 5–10/day. One follow-up after 2 weeks if no reply. Then drop it."*

SAFETY CHECK

Same as Day 1.

WHAT'S NEXT

Day 58 of 100. Pair with Day 49 — The Personal CRM (track who you've DMd) and Day 18 — First-100-Customers Plan.