The prompt
Score 10 of 10, Excellent
Use it when You need a former manager or colleague to give you a reference, and you want to ask well and remind them what to speak to.
- {{reference_person}}
- {{target_role}}
- {{relationship}}
- {{timing}}
- {{job_highlights}}
- {{shared_work}}
Full prompt and why it works
Prompt
Help me ask {{reference_person}} to be a reference for my application to {{target_role}}, and brief them so that they can speak to what this employer cares about. They have not agreed yet, so the first message has to make it easy to say yes or no. How we know each other and when we last spoke: {{relationship}} When the employer may contact them, and how: {{timing}} What the job asks for most: """ {{job_highlights}} """ Work we did together that shows those things, with dates and results where I have them: """ {{shared_work}} """ Write three messages, each under its own heading: 1. A request message, 80 to 130 words, that reminds them briefly of our work together, asks whether they would be comfortable giving a reference, gives the timing and offers an easy way to decline. 2. A briefing note to send only after they agree, under 200 words: the role and company, the three things the employer cares about most, and two or three specific examples from our work together that they could mention, phrased as reminders, not a script. 3. A thank-you message of under 60 words to send after the reference is given. The tone should be warm and respectful of their time. For example, a reminder in the right form, with invented details: "You might remember the supplier switch in 2023, when we cut onboarding for new suppliers from three weeks to one." Use only the work and results I listed. Do not exaggerate what we did, put words in their mouth, or ask them to speak to anything they did not see for themselves. If we have not spoken in a long time or worked together only briefly, say so and suggest how to reconnect first, or whether someone else might be a better choice. If I have not given enough shared work for a useful briefing, write part 2 with bracketed placeholders and list the questions I should answer to fill them.
Variables
- {{reference_person}}
- Their name and role, for example "Dana, my manager at my last job".
- {{target_role}}
- The job and company you applied to.
- {{relationship}}
- How you worked together and when you were last in touch.
- {{timing}}
- When and how the employer will contact them, for example "a phone call next week".
- {{job_highlights}}
- The main requirements of the job, copied or summarized from the posting.
- {{shared_work}}
- Projects or situations they saw you handle, with dates and results.
Why it works
- Who it's for. The briefing ties your shared work to what this employer cares about, so the reference supports the application instead of being generic praise.
- What to avoid. It never puts words in their mouth or asks them to vouch for what they did not see, which protects their credibility and yours.
- If unsure. A long silence or thin shared history prompts advice to reconnect first or choose someone else.