# inbox catch up summary
## Metadata

- Canonical URL: https://6ducklearn.com/skills/inbox-catch-up-summary/
- Markdown URL: https://6ducklearn.com/skills/inbox-catch-up-summary/index.md
- Product: skills
- Category: productivity
- Tags: curated, google-workspace, email, gmail, inbox
- Updated: 2026-07-14T03:00:00.357428+00:00
## 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'.
## Content
> **Attribution:** Prepared by 6DuckLearn. Inspired by [Google Workspace with Gemini Prompting Guide 101 (2025)](https://workspace.google.com).

## When to use this

You've been away — vacation, sick leave, a no-email day — and you need to know what arrived from a key person without reading every message. This prompt gives you an immediate snapshot.

## What you'll get

A concise summary of all emails from the specified sender within your chosen timeframe, each with a clickable Sources tile so you can jump straight to the original email.

## Prompt template

Use this in **Gemini in Gmail** (open Gmail, click the Gemini side panel):

```
Summarize emails from [sender name or email address] from the last [timeframe].
```

**Fill in the variables:**
- `[sender name or email address]` — e.g. "my manager Sarah", "sarah@company.com", or "the finance team"
- `[timeframe]` — e.g. "3 days", "week", "2 weeks", "while I was on leave (June 10–17)"

## Customisation tips

- Scope by topic: *"Summarize emails from [manager] about the Q3 roadmap from the last week"*
- Multiple senders: Run separate prompts per sender and compare — Gemini handles one sender at a time best
- After the summary appears, click any **Sources tile** to jump directly to that email thread
- Works on mobile — open Gmail on your phone and tap the Gemini icon in the side panel

## Iteration suggestions

After Gemini gives you the summary:
1. **Found action items?** → use `email-thread-action-items` to extract tasks from a specific thread
2. **Need to reply?** → use `file-grounded-email-reply` if you have a relevant Drive doc, or `email-acknowledge-commit` for a quick acknowledgement

## Related skills in this workflow

| Step | Skill | What it does |
|------|-------|--------------|
| 1 → You are here | `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 | `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](https://6ducklearn.com/skills/email-acknowledge-commit/index.md): 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](https://6ducklearn.com/skills/email-thread-action-items/index.md): 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'.
- [file grounded email reply](https://6ducklearn.com/skills/file-grounded-email-reply/index.md): 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'.
- [board meeting confirmation email](https://6ducklearn.com/skills/board-meeting-confirmation-email/index.md): 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](https://6ducklearn.com/skills/daily-briefing-notebooklm/index.md): 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](https://6ducklearn.com/skills/delegate-meeting-with-assignments/index.md): 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'.