Set Up Email Triage Rules and Responses

This prompt turns a chaotic inbox into a system, producing filter rules, reusable reply templates, a deep-work auto-responder, and a checking cadence all tailored to how you actually receive email. It's interactive by design — you describe your real volume and the email types you get, and the model builds the four-part setup around your specifics rather than handing you generic advice. Reach for it when you're drowning in messages and want a repeatable Inbox Zero workflow instead of one-off triage.

What you can expect back

1. Filter rules:
- From client domains -> label "Clients" + skip inbox if FYI-only.
- Subject contains "support" or "issue" -> label "Support" + star.
- Internal team domain -> label "Team," auto-mark read if newsletter-style.
- Known newsletter senders -> label "Read Later," skip inbox.
- Recruiter keywords -> label "Recruiting," route to a weekly review.

2. Templates:
- Support ack: "Thanks for flagging this — I've logged it and will update you by [time]."
- Internal FYI: "Got it, no action needed on my end. Thanks for the heads-up."
- Recruiter decline: "Appreciate you reaching out — I'm not exploring new roles right now, but happy to stay connected."

3. Deep-work auto-responder:
"I'm heads-down on focused work until [time] and checking email at 12pm and 4pm. For anything urgent, [contact/Slack]."

4. Cadence: Process in three batches — 9am, 12:30pm, 4pm. Touch each email once: delete, delegate, do (<2 min), or defer to a labeled queue.

Illustrative example — your results will vary by tool and inputs.

Get sharper results

• 01Be specific about your real recurring senders and topics — the filter rules are only as useful as the patterns you describe, so name actual clients, tools, or newsletters.
• 02Tell the model which email client you use (Gmail, Outlook, Superhuman) so it phrases the filters in steps you can actually click through.
• 03Ask it to write each template with a clearly bracketed variable so you can drop them straight into canned-response or text-expander tools.
• 04Have it suggest which labels should skip the inbox entirely versus stay visible — auto-archiving low-priority mail is what actually creates Inbox Zero.
• 05Request a 2-minute weekly review step for the labeled queues so deferred email doesn't quietly pile up into a new backlog.

Adapt it for your case