Reply calmly to an angry or emotionally charged message from a colleague
Drafts a calm, professional reply to a heated email or Teams or Slack message that lowers the temperature and moves things forward.
The prompt
Help me reply to an emotionally charged message from someone I work with.
Their message: [PASTE]
Who sent it and our relationship: [ROLE, history]
What I think triggered it: [CONTEXT - optional]
Where it came in: [email / Teams / Slack / text], and who else can see it: [just me / cc list / group channel]
What's true in their complaint, if anything: [BE HONEST]
What I need from the outcome: [e.g. fix the problem, correct a misunderstanding, protect the relationship]
Give me:
1. What's really going on - the underlying concern behind the heat, and which points are fair, mistaken, or unclear.
2. Whether to reply in writing at all - or suggest a quick call instead, with a one-line message to set it up.
3. The reply, which: acknowledges their concern without accepting unfair blame, owns anything that is genuinely mine, corrects facts neutrally, and proposes a clear next step. Under 150 words.
4. A version for a public channel if others can see it - shorter, moving the detail to a private conversation.
5. What not to do - matching their tone, replying point by point, adding people to cc, or sending while angry.
Rules: no sarcasm, passive aggression, or defensive over-explaining. Don't admit fault for things I haven't said are my fault. If the message includes threats, harassment, or discriminatory language, tell me to keep a copy and involve my manager or HR rather than just reply.
Highlighted [brackets] are blanks to replace with your own details.
Fill in the blanks and use this promptMore Email & Workplace Communication prompts
What to fill in
- PASTE
- ROLE, history
- CONTEXT - optional
- email / Teams / Slack / text
- just me / cc list / group channel
- BE HONEST
How this prompt is built
This prompt follows the RTF structure (Role, Task, Format). RTF tells the model who to be, what to do and what shape the answer should take. It is the quickest structure that still gives noticeably better results than a bare request.
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