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+---
+layout: "../../layouts/BlogPost.astro"
+title: "Picking your brain: Cold call email etiquette"
+slug: cold-call-email
+description: 'I get a LOT of emails from people asking to "pick my brain." Here is how I wish people would approach this.'
+added: "Jul 20 2015"
+tags: [advice]
+---
+
+I love meeting with people.  Coffee chats with different people is so fun!
+
+But, unfortunately, I don't scale well.  After talking with my friend
+[Rebecca Garcia](http://www.geekgirlweb.com/), I realized I wasn't alone in
+this.  As you get more involved with work and the community, a coffee chat isn't
+just a one-off, it's a constant stream of requests.
+
+I've slowly gotten better at handling them, I use [Assistant.to](http://www.assistant.to/)
+to schedule things and try to only meet with people a max of twice a week, but
+that's created *quite* the backlog.
+
+So, this is a post for you, the meeting requester, and for the benefit of you
+and myself/anyone busy to whom you might be reaching out.  This is how to ask a
+busy person for a coffee chat.
+
+### 1. Be specific.
+
+Don't just email someone saying, "Hey, I saw you once, and I'd like to pick your
+brain! I'm free tomorrow."
+
+I don't know what you mean.
+
+You could want to literally pick pieces of their brain out for all I know.  Not
+to be dramatic.  But you didn't specify.
+
+Make sure you say *how* you met the person you're contacting, and why you're
+contacting them.  Simple stuff.  Big impact.
+
+### 2. Be flexible.
+
+You're asking the person to meet you and take time out of their day.  So, you
+should work with their schedule!  Give them several options, let them pick a
+location (or pick one that's convenient for them), give them an out, and don't
+be sad if they aren't able to meet with you for a while (if at all).
+
+At that point, just email them your questions or whatever, and have hope that
+they'll email you back!
+
+### 3. Don't be afraid to ping them if they haven't gotten back to you in a week.
+
+If someone emails me for a nonspecific coffee chat and I have a bunch of other
+emails that day, I might not get back to them for a while.  I personally really
+appreciate pings.  It's a friendly reminder, and it puts you back on someone's
+radar.  Now, if the busy person doesn't get back to you after a couple pings,
+don't fret, and again, don't be sad.  They're busy for a reason!  There's plenty
+of other fish in the sea.  And people in the world, if fish isn't your thing.
+
+### 4. Be prepared.
+
+If you're nonspecific in your email, that can be frustrating for a busy person
+among their mass amounts of meet up requests.  Outside of being specific, be
+prepared.  If they reply back with questions about what you mean, or with
+details, be ready to give that information up right away.  This is both for your
+benefit and theirs, because you want to get the most out of it, and they want to
+give relevant, efficient information and advice!
+
+### That's it.
+
+A *much* better email is something like, "hey, I'm interested in how you got to
+where you are today. I'm a ________ at ________, I met you at/read about you in
+________ and I just have a few questions about what classes I should take/which
+role I should follow/how I should format my resume.  Could we meet for coffee?
+My treat!  I'm pretty free over the next few weeks, Tuesdays and Thursdays are
+best!  I know you're a busy bee, so I can work around your schedule.
+Let me know, and see you soon."
+
+This is clear, it gives options for dates, it gives an out, and it lets the
+person know what you want from them.  If I got this email, I would meet with you.
+
+Good luck!