The art of cold emailing

A thread...

Cold emailing is the act of sending an email (or a DM) to someone who doesn’t know you (hence the word, cold!)

Every day I get 300+ emails, most from those I do not know, and a shocking number of them are poorly written.

Here are 10 things that work for emails that I reply to

1. A different (but not aggressive) subject line

Ask yourself, what is the most likely subject line that EVERYONE will tend to write.
And then DO NOT write that.

What works?
Personalization (I think Vidur and Uzma will love this)
Intrigue (This is when I first saw you)

What doesn’t work?
Common themes (Seeking investment; Job application)
Aggression (Your content sucks - true story btw. It was used only to catch attention)
Buzzwords (AI/ML startup by Stanford founder)

2. The salutation

It is crazy how this small thing is so impactful.
How do you start your email?

Hi Ankur / Hey Ankur / Good Morning Ankur / Dear Mr. Warikoo etc

Adding harmless emoticons helps (😊)

My Productivity Hacks

A thread...

Productivity Hack #1
Not try to remember anything

I consciously and obsessively try to NOT remember things.
So that my mind dispenses the least amount of energy in remembering tasks or even context.

Hence, I carry a notebook with me always.
I take notes like a school student
I put tasks in a calendar
I send myself emails in the future

My mind's energy should be spent in thinking.
Not remembering!

Productivity Hack #2
Document EVERYTHING!

At any point I have 3 notebooks
1. Ideas
2. Todos lists for the day
3. Meeting notes

And I write down things.

Writing helps tell the brain that this is important.
And it helps me not "try and remember" anything.

Productivity Hack #3
I put everything on a calendar

My calendar is my lifeline.
Everything is on my calendar.
Bills to pay, birthdays to remember, threads to write, weekly routines.