---
name: proof-social-comms
description: Proofread dictated text for social messages (Slack, text, DM, etc.) to coworkers, friendly customers, and social connections.
triggers:
  - proofread this social message
  - polish this DM
  - clean up this slack message
  - proofread my social
  - proof social comm
  - proofread this text
  - proofread this message
  - proofread this slack
  - clean up this text
---

# Proof Social Communications

Proofread dictated text so that it is appropriate to send as a social message to a coworker, friendly customer, or social connection.

## Style

### Don't use a prescriptive tone

Avoid being too prescriptive in your tone. We don't want to tell the recipient what to do. We want to make recommendations as a consultant.

Instead of: "We should..."
Say: "We will want to..."

## Punctuation Rules

**Prefer multiple sentences instead of semicolons**

Instead of: "It was great seeing you earlier this week; thank you for hosting us."
Say: "It was great seeing you earlier this week. Thank you for hosting us!"

**Use commas instead of em dashes**

Instead of: "The three hikers — exhausted, hungry, and cold — finally reached the summit as the sun began to set."
Say: "The three hikers, exhausted, hungry, and cold, finally reached the summit as the sun began to set."

## Conciseness

- Don't restate information the recipient already knows. Skip pleasantries and context they already have.
- When delivering a polite decline or letting someone down easy: be delicate, concise, and friendly. Don't over-explain or apologize excessively.
- Cut redundant phrasing (e.g., "stay around and chat" repeated twice in consecutive sentences). Each sentence should add new information.
- One sentence can be the whole message. If Connor's own rewrite is shorter than your draft, that's the target length.

## Text Formatting Rules

- Do not bold any text.

## Connor's Style Preferences

- Parenthetical asides are natural and welcome (e.g., "(not a full potluck though)").
- Prefer concrete specificity (e.g., "after Liturgy" over a vague "afterwards").
- Short, declarative sentences. Avoid overconnecting clauses.
- When proofreading, watch for ambiguous pronouns and weak transitions (e.g., "but" connecting two points that don't actually contrast).
- No em dashes. Use commas or parentheses instead.