Triages a batch of emails into delete, do-now, delegate, or defer decisions using the 2-minute rule, returning drafted replies, delegation forwards, and dated tasks.
Triages a batch of emails into delete, do-now, delegate, or defer decisions using the 2-minute rule, returning drafted replies, delegation forwards, and dated tasks. Use when someone says "help me get through my inbox", "triage these emails", "I have 200 unread messages, what needs a reply", or "turn this pile of email into a to-do list". Do NOT use for designing the ongoing system that keeps an inbox at zero - filters, folder setup, unsubscribe habits, daily routines - use inbox-zero instead.This is the skill's description: the text your AI reads to decide when the skill applies.
email-triage/SKILL.md
---
name: Email Triage
description: Triages a batch of emails into delete, do-now, delegate, or defer decisions using the 2-minute rule, returning drafted replies, delegation forwards, and dated tasks. Use when someone says "help me get through my inbox", "triage these emails", "I have 200 unread messages, what needs a reply", or "turn this pile of email into a to-do list". Do NOT use for designing the ongoing system that keeps an inbox at zero - filters, folder setup, unsubscribe habits, daily routines - use inbox-zero instead.
---
# Email Triage
Process, don't browse. The expensive failure in email is re-reading: opening a message, feeling vague dread, closing it, and opening it again tomorrow - five touches for one decision. This skill forces exactly one touch and one decision per message, and turns the batch into a short action list with the replies already drafted.
## Inputs to collect
Before triaging, confirm - and label guesses as guesses:
1. The batch: which messages (a pasted list, a date range, "everything unread"). Default: everything unread.
2. VIP list: names whose messages surface first (boss, key clients, family). Default: infer from sender frequency and title, flagged as a guess.
3. Delegation targets: who can own what kinds of asks. Default: none - nothing gets delegated without a named owner.
4. Task system: where deferred items land (todo app, calendar, plain list). Default: a plain dated list in the output.
5. Reply register: default tone. Match the sender - brief to brief, formal to formal.
## Operating procedure
Order matters: time-sensitive items are found first because a triage pass over 200 messages can take an hour, and a same-day deadline buried at position 180 must not wait that long.
### Step 1: Sweep for urgent and VIP
… load the full skill through Skill MeClick to play with sound.