6DuckLearn Skills

file grounded email reply

Use this when you need to reply to an email and have a Google Drive document that contains the relevant data, proposal, or initiative details. Trigger when someone says: 'draft a reply using my doc', 'respond using the [filename]', 'write an email referencing our proposal', or 'reply with context from a file'.

productivity Tags: curated, google-workspace, email, gmail, inbox

Attribution: Prepared by 6DuckLearn. Inspired by Google Workspace with Gemini Prompting Guide 101 (2025).

When to use this

You've received an email about a project, initiative, or proposal — and the best reply requires pulling in real data from a document you already have in Drive. Instead of copy-pasting, let Gemini read the file and draft the reply.

What you'll get

A full draft reply that weaves in specific details from your Drive document, personalised to the email you're responding to. Ready to review, refine, and send.

Prompt template

Use this in Gemini in Gmail (open the email you're replying to, then open the Gemini side panel):

Generate a response to this email and use @[filename] to describe how [your initiative or topic] can complement the workstream outlined in [colleague's name or their proposal].

Fill in the variables:

  • @[filename] — type @ and start typing the Drive file name; Gemini will autocomplete it
  • [your initiative or topic] — the project, proposal, or idea you want to highlight
  • [colleague's name or their proposal] — what they described in their email (e.g. "Marcus's Q3 go-to-market plan")

Customisation tips

  • Multiple files: Tag more than one file — "use @[Strategy Doc] and @[Project Proposal]"
  • Specify tone: Add "Keep the tone collaborative and concise" or "Use a formal executive tone"
  • After drafting, click Refine → Shorten to tighten it, or Formalize if it's going to senior leadership
  • Works best when the Drive file is a Google Doc or Sheet — PDFs work but may need to be shared first

Iteration suggestions

After Gemini drafts the reply:

  1. Tone too long? → Click Refine → Shorten in the Gmail side panel
  2. Needs to be more formal? → Click Refine → Formalize
  3. Want to add a commitment? → use email-acknowledge-commit pattern to add a deadline commitment at the end

Related skills in this workflow

Step Skill What it does
1 inbox-catch-up-summary Summarise emails from a sender after time away
2 email-thread-action-items Extract action items and deadlines from a thread
3 → You are here file-grounded-email-reply Draft a reply grounded in a Drive file
4 email-acknowledge-commit Send a quick acknowledgement with a commitment

Related skills

  • email acknowledge commit — Use this when you need to send a quick, professional reply that confirms receipt of an email and commits to a specific action by a deadline. Trigger when someone says: 'acknowledge this email', 'reply that I received it', 'confirm I'll take action', or 'send a holding reply'.
  • email thread action items — Use this when you're looking at a long email thread and need to know what tasks, deadlines, and owners came out of it — without reading every reply. Trigger when someone says: 'extract action items', 'what are the next steps in this thread', 'summarise this email chain', or 'what's due from this email'.
  • inbox catch up summary — Use this when you return from vacation, a long weekend, or any absence and need to quickly understand what a specific sender has emailed you. Trigger when someone says: 'catch up on emails', 'summarise my inbox', 'what did [person] send', or 'I've been away'.
  • board meeting confirmation email — Use this when an executive needs to confirm attendance at a board meeting and request an agenda change — drafted and sent from Gmail with a single prompt. Trigger when someone says: 'confirm board meeting', 'reply to board invite', 'adjust board agenda', or 'add item to board agenda'.
  • daily briefing notebooklm — Use this when an executive wants a hands-free audio summary of their day's key documents, reports, and schedule — ideal for commutes or pre-meeting prep. Trigger when someone says: 'morning briefing', 'commute briefing', 'audio summary of my reports', 'NotebookLM overview', or 'brief me on today's docs'.
  • delegate meeting with assignments — Use this when an executive cannot attend a meeting and needs to delegate attendance, assign note-taking, specify a required decision, and assign ownership of follow-up work — all in one email. Trigger when someone says: 'I can't make the meeting', 'delegate the meeting', 'assign someone to attend in my place', or 'draft a meeting delegation email'.