Your emails get skimmed
People reply to the first paragraph and miss the question in the fourth.
Courses
Start with three things you can do today
How to write a professional email that gets a reply
Write emails that say what you need, and by when, in the first two lines.
Put the request and the deadline where a skimming reader will see them, then give only the context needed to act. The course covers subject lines, structure, tone, follow-ups and when an email should be a call instead.
Type this when Cadence asks what you want to learn
I want to write work emails that people actually read and act on. Mine get skimmed, answered with questions I already covered, or ignored, and I want to know how to put the ask first and keep them short.
Change any word so it fits your situation. The course is built from what you type and a few setup questions.
Start today
Four things you can do before the course exists.
Useful on their own. The course is for when you want the whole skill, not just the first move.
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Rewrite the subject line as a request
Original example: change "Budget" to "Approve Q3 travel budget by Thursday". The reader knows what is needed and when before opening the email. Keep it short enough to read in an inbox list.
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Move the ask into the first two lines
Original example: "Could you approve the attached travel budget by Thursday 5pm? It is $2,400, within the plan we agreed in May." Background goes underneath. Check: if someone read only the first two lines, would they know what to do?
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Make the reply easy
Offer a choice that can be answered in one word: "Shall I book option A (Tuesday) or option B (Wednesday)?" Number separate questions so none get missed, and say what you will do if you hear nothing, when that is appropriate.
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Follow up in the same thread
Original example: "Following up on the budget below. I need a yes or no by Wednesday noon to hold the hotel rate." Replying in the original thread keeps the context with it. Give a real reason for the deadline, not an invented one.
- Best for
- Communication
- Prerequisites
- None. Bring the situation you have.
- Course length
- 7 to 30 lessons, sized to your goal
- Lesson pace
- About 10 minutes a day
- Format
- Read it, or play the audio
- Access
- Available on the App Store, with early features and Android testing access
Before the course is built
Setup asks about your situation first.
Lesson 1 opens on the moment you describe, and the examples use your role. For this request, expect questions like these.
- Who do you email most: your team, senior people, clients, or people you do not know?
- What usually goes wrong: no reply, the wrong reply, or a long back-and-forth?
- Is there an email you need to send this week?
Right for now
If any of this sounds familiar, start here.
You chase replies
Half your follow-ups exist because the first message never said what you needed.
You write to senior people
You want to be brief without sounding abrupt or leaving out what they need to decide.
Course arc
Where the course goes, in order.
Cadence writes the lessons for you, so the exact path follows your answers. This is the ground a course built from this sentence covers.
01 / 06What a reader does with an email
Skimming, deciding and acting, and why the order of your sentences matters.
The ask first
Writing the request, owner and deadline in the opening lines.
Subject lines
Naming the purpose and any deadline so the email can be found and sorted.
Just enough context
Choosing the background a reader needs to act and cutting the rest.
Tone and length
Being direct and polite at the same time, for colleagues, seniors and strangers.
Follow-ups and when to switch
Nudging well, and recognising when a call or a meeting will settle it faster.
What changes
What you will be able to do, and what you will stop believing.
You will be able to
Lead with the ask
State the request, the owner and the deadline before the background.
Write subject lines that sort themselves
Make the purpose and timing clear from the inbox view.
Follow up without nagging
Send a short, specific nudge that makes replying easy.
Ideas this course corrects
Longer emails show more effort
Length makes the request harder to find. Effort shows in how easy the email is to act on.
Starting with the request is rude
A brief courtesy and a clear ask can sit together. Burying the request mostly costs the reader time.
Course questions
What to know before you start.
How to write a professional email that gets a reply: what can I do today?
Rewrite the subject line as a request. Original example: change "Budget" to "Approve Q3 travel budget by Thursday". The reader knows what is needed and when before opening the email. Keep it short enough to read in an inbox list. Move the ask into the first two lines. Original example: "Could you approve the attached travel budget by Thursday 5pm? It is $2,400, within the plan we agreed in May." Background goes underneath. Check: if someone read only the first two lines, would they know what to do? Make the reply easy. Offer a choice that can be answered in one word: "Shall I book option A (Tuesday) or option B (Wednesday)?" Number separate questions so none get missed, and say what you will do if you hear nothing, when that is appropriate. Follow up in the same thread. Original example: "Following up on the budget below. I need a yes or no by Wednesday noon to hold the hotel rate." Replying in the original thread keeps the context with it. Give a real reason for the deadline, not an invented one.
Is this a fixed course?
No. Cadence builds the course when you type the sentence and answer a few setup questions, so the lessons follow your situation. This page describes what a course built from this request covers. You see the whole path before Lesson 1.
Who is this course for?
Put the request and the deadline where a skimming reader will see them, then give only the context needed to act. The course covers subject lines, structure, tone, follow-ups and when an email should be a call instead. It sits under Communication in the Work & ambitions part of the library.
Do I need any prior experience?
No. Setup asks what you already know and where you want to use it, and the course starts from there. Bring a real situation if you have one; the examples are built around it.
How long does it take?
Courses run 7 to 30 lessons of about 10 minutes, sized to what you asked for. One lesson a day is the intended pace, and you can go faster. Lessons can be read or played as audio.
Does this course award a certificate or degree?
No. Cadence is for practical self-learning and does not award accredited degrees or professional certification.
Start today
Type it, answer a few questions, open Lesson 1.
The sentence to type
I want to write work emails that people actually read and act on. Mine get skimmed, answered with questions I already covered, or ignored, and I want to know how to put the ask first and keep them short.