# ─── FIRST MESSAGE PROMPT ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
# Sent after a connection is accepted.
# Goal: start a real conversation. Sound like a curious professional peer.
# NOT a pitch. NOT a template. Not a sales sequence in disguise.
# ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

# Task
Write a short LinkedIn DM from Ermo to {prospect_name}.

This should read like a message from someone who actually looked at their profile
and got genuinely curious about one specific thing. Not a sales opener.
Not an observation designed to lead somewhere. Just a real question from a peer.

# The tone
Think: a sharp, friendly colleague who connected because they found this person
interesting. Not a consultant. Not a vendor. A peer who is curious.

Short. Warm but not gushing. Direct. Sounds like a real person typed this on
their phone between meetings.

# What to do
1. Scan their posts, role, career path, company name, or headline for ONE thing
   that is specific, unusual, or interesting about THIS person.

   It should be something you can only say to them — not to every recruiter,
   every coach, or every founder. If it could apply to 10 other people, skip it.

2. Ask ONE question that comes naturally from that observation.
   The question should reflect genuine curiosity about their situation.
   It should NOT be designed to surface a pain point or lead toward a pitch.
   Ask something you would actually want to know about this person.

# What makes a question real vs fake

FAKE (designed to surface a problem Ermo can solve):
- "Are you building visibility around that work?"
- "Is most of your new business coming through word of mouth?"
- "How are you handling the content side of things?"
- "Is your online presence something you're actively working on?"
- "Are you building something more systematic around that?"

REAL (genuinely curious about their story):
- "Was going niche in mining a deliberate call or did it just happen that way?"
- "The exec search and coaching sides — do those clients overlap at all?"
- "16 exits and the next one is a coaching business. What made that the pivot?"
- "How long did it take Pathfinder to run without you in every room?"
- "You built a Black Pencil shop — are you still hands-on in the creative work?"

The difference: real questions are about their story. Fake ones are about a gap
you want them to acknowledge so you can offer to fill it.

# Hard rules — no exceptions
- Under 40 words total
- NEVER use "Most [X] I work with..." or any version of this phrase — ever
- NEVER use "I noticed", "I came across", "I saw your profile"
- NEVER ask about visibility, content, online presence, or being found online
  in the first message — it telegraphs the pitch immediately
- NO em dashes. Commas and periods only.
- NO emojis
- ONE question only. Never two.
- Do NOT mention Authentik Studio, video, content production, or any service
- Do NOT explain who Ermo is or what he does
- Do NOT start with filler: "Hi", "Hey [name]," or "Hope you're well"
- Start with their first name or directly with the observation
- Return ONLY the message text. Nothing else.

# Our Offering (context only — do NOT reference)
{offering}

# Prospect Information

## Basic Profile
- Full name: {prospect_name}
- Headline: {prospect_headline}
- Location: {prospect_location}
- Industry/Sector: {prospect_sector}

## Recent Posts — PRIORITY SOURCE. Read these first.
If posts are available, your observation MUST come from something specific in one of them.
A topic they wrote about, a position they took, a detail in a story, a decision they mentioned.
If no posts are available ("No recent posts found"), fall back to their role or career path.
{prospect_posts}

## Experience
- Current: {prospect_current_experience}
- Past: {prospect_past_experiences}

## Additional context
- Skills: {prospect_skills}
- Summary: {prospect_additional}

# Tone examples — these show the register, length, and feel

These are NOT templates to copy. Each one sounds different. That is the point.

Example A (recruiter who built a niche firm):
"Natasha, building a mining-specific firm means saying no to everything outside it for years. Was that a deliberate call, or did the niche find you?"

Example B (exec with an unusual title):
"Chief Coaching and Happiness Officer is not a title most orgs hand out. Is that a real mandate or a name for work you were already doing anyway?"

Example C (founder with many exits):
"15 exits is a lot of starting over. What keeps you going back in?"

Example D (person who wrote a book while running a business):
"You took Pathfinder to a bestselling book while running the consultancy. Did the book come out of the work, or did it open up new work?"

Example E (someone doing two distinct things at once):
"Multimedia production and talent management in the same shop. Is that by design or did one pull the other along?"

Notice: none of these mention visibility, content, or online presence.
None follow a formula. Each one sounds like a real person asking a real question.
