/slack-message - Write Contextual Messages Fast
When the PM types /slack-message, craft Slack messages that match their voice, include the right context, and get the response they need.
When to Use
- Asking for status updates without seeming pushy
- Sharing meeting recaps or decisions
- Requesting help or unblocking yourself
- Announcing product updates or launches
- Escalating issues tactfully
- Following up on action items
- Celebrating wins with the team
How It Works
Quick 2-step process:
Step 1: Tell Me What You Need
Step 2: Get a Perfectly Crafted Message
Step 1: Tell Me What You Need
When the PM types /slack-message, I'll ask:
Let's craft a Slack message together.
**What's the situation?**
Tell me in plain language:
- Who are you messaging? (Person or channel)
- What do you need from them?
- What's the context they should know?
- How urgent is this?
- What tone should I use? (Direct / Friendly / Formal / Urgent)
Don't worry about structure - just tell me what happened and what you need.What I Need to Know
Recipient:
- Specific person (@Sarah)
- Team channel (#engineering)
- Leadership (#exec-team)
- Cross-functional (#product-updates)
Purpose:
- Request information
- Share update
- Ask for help
- Follow up on action item
- Escalate blocker
- Celebrate win
- Announce decision
Context I'll Pull From:
- Recent meeting notes
- Stakeholder profiles (their communication preferences)
- Your writing style (from context library)
- Past interactions or decisions
- Company culture and norms
Tone Options:
- 📘 Direct - Get to the point, minimal fluff
- 👋 Friendly - Warm and collaborative
- 🎩 Formal - Professional, executive-ready
- 🚨 Urgent - Time-sensitive, needs attention now
- 🎉 Celebratory - Sharing good news
- 🤝 Tactful - Sensitive topic, needs careful wording
Step 2: Get Your Message
Once I understand the situation:
Got it. I'll write a [tone] message to [recipient] about [topic].
I'm using:
- Your [internal/technical/executive] writing style
- Context from [relevant meeting notes or PRD]
- [Recipient]'s communication preferences from their profile
Here's your message:Standard Message Format
[Opening - context in one line]
[Main content - 2-4 sentences max]
[Clear ask or next step]
[Optional: Additional context in thread]Message Templates by Scenario
Scenario 1: Status Update Request (The Tactful Follow-Up)
Your input:
I need to ask Sarah about the roadmap proposal action items.
It's January 28th and she was supposed to finish them by yesterday.
I don't want to be pushy but this is blocking other work.My output:
Hey Sarah 👋
Quick check-in on the roadmap proposal action items from our meeting last
week. I know these directly impact our Q1 strategic objectives and the ARR
recovery plan.
Could you give me a quick update on where things stand? Specifically:
• Roadmap proposal doc
• Customer segmentation analysis
• Resource allocation recommendations
Happy to help unblock anything on your end. These are feeding into the exec
review on Friday, so would love to sync before then if possible.
Thanks!Why this works:
- Opens warmly, not accusatorily
- Provides context (Q1 objectives, ARR plan)
- Specific about what you need
- Offers help (collaborative, not demanding)
- Includes deadline with reason (exec review Friday)
- Matches internal audience style from your context library
Scenario 2: Sharing Meeting Recap
Your input:
Need to share the stakeholder meeting recap with the team.
We decided to A/B test instead of full launch, and there are
some action items people need to know about.My output:
**Stakeholder Meeting Recap: Voice Feature** 📝
Quick update from today's roadmap review with Sarah (VP Product):
*Main decision:* ✅ Q1 timeline approved for voice feature (conditional)
*Approach:*
• Phased beta with week 1 checkpoint
• If edit rates >50%, we pull back and reassess
• Legal review required before beta (voice data = GDPR implications)
*Action items:*
• @You - Legal review initiation (this week)
• @Engineering - Confirm edit rate tracking ready (before beta)
• @You - Set up week 1 checkpoint meeting (before beta)
Full context: The VP liked that our kill criteria were already in the PRD.
Scope clarity (mobile-only, creation-only) helped get quick approval.
*Next checkpoint:* Week 1 of beta to review edit rates
Questions or concerns? Drop them here 👇Why this works:
- Scannable with emoji and formatting
- Leads with the decision (BLUF - Bottom Line Up Front)
- Clear action items with owners
- Provides just enough context
- Invites questions at the end
- Direct and action-oriented (internal style)
Scenario 3: Escalating a Blocker
Your input:
The API integration with the payment provider is blocked because
Legal hasn't responded in 2 weeks. This is now blocking our Q1 launch.
I need to escalate to my manager without throwing Legal under the bus.My output:
Hey [Manager name] - flagging a blocker that needs your help 🚨
*Situation:* Our voice feature launch is at risk due to legal review timeline.
*Context:*
• We submitted the voice data processing review to Legal on Jan 12
• This review is required before we can launch beta (GDPR compliance)
• We're now 2 weeks in with no response
• Beta was scheduled to start Jan 29 (this Friday)
*What I've tried:*
• Followed up with Legal via email (Jan 18, Jan 23)
• Reached out to [Legal contact] on Slack (Jan 24)
• No response yet - assuming they're swamped
*What I need:*
Could you help escalate this through the right channels? I want to:
1. Understand Legal's timeline and workload
2. See if there's a way to expedite given our launch deadline
3. Have a backup plan if this pushes our launch date
I'm flexible on the launch date if needed, but want to make sure we're not
sitting idle waiting when there might be options to accelerate.
Happy to provide any additional context Legal might need.Why this works:
- Clear situation/impact upfront
- Shows you've already tried to resolve it
- Doesn't blame Legal (acknowledges they're likely swamped)
- Specific ask (escalate with understanding)
- Flexible and solution-oriented
- Professional and complete (good for manager context)
Scenario 4: Requesting Help
Your input:
I'm stuck on the data analysis for the user research.
I have like 200 survey responses and I don't know how to
identify the themes. Can Jake help? He's done this before.My output:
Hey Jake 👋
I could use your brain on something. I'm analyzing user research data
for the onboarding redesign and I'm a bit stuck on the thematic analysis.
*What I have:*
• 200 survey responses (mix of multiple choice and open-ended)
• Raw interview transcripts from 8 users
• Notes from 5 usability tests
*Where I'm stuck:*
I'm not sure how to identify patterns across the qualitative data without
just cherry-picking quotes that confirm what I already think 😅
I know you crushed the user research analysis for the pricing page project.
Any chance you could:
• Walk me through your process? (15-20 min call?)
• Or point me to resources/tools you used?
Totally fine if you're swamped - I can figure it out. But thought I'd ask
since you've done this successfully before.
Thanks!Why this works:
- Specific about what you need help with
- Shows you've done the work (not asking them to do it for you)
- Acknowledges their expertise (recognizes past success)
- Gives them an out if they're busy
- Friendly and humble tone
- Time-bounded ask (15-20 min)
Scenario 5: Announcing a Product Update
Your input:
We just launched the voice task feature to beta users.
Want to share the news with the company and thank the team.My output:
🎉 **Launch Update: Voice Tasks in Beta!**