E1 · Set up the Project
10 minCreate the "New contacts" Project (or Gem) with the sheet filled out: what you sell, your spreadsheet columns, and your booking link.
Done when: the sheet passes the lesson 2 checker (7 fields and the safety rules).
Lesson 4 · 16 min
New contact becomes a draft, never a sent message
A contact who reaches out on Friday and only gets a reply on Tuesday may lose interest. Reading each message, noting it in the spreadsheet, and writing a reply is boring work, but the reply speaks to the customer: that’s why the agent prepares everything as a draft and stops. You read it and press send.
Start the lesson
In this lesson, you’ll
- 1Record contacts without duplicates
- 2Receive the ready-to-send reply as a draft
- 3Approve or correct before it goes out
- 4Separate spam and give the reason
Goal: build the agent that records each new contact in the spreadsheet and leaves a reply as a draft for you to approve.
01A new contact’s journey
Click each step. The gate is where you step in.
Click each block in the diagram to see what it does.
The agent handles the boring work (reading, taking notes, writing); anything sent to a customer goes through the gate.
02Try the gate
Run the agent, read the draft that stopped at the gate, and decide.
- Drafts
- Gate
- Send
- Spreadsheet
lead-1.txt
Illustrative browser simulation: nothing is sent. The mistake in the draft is intentional.
03The contact agent’s sheet and a practice run
Replace what’s inside [brackets]. The sample contacts are made up.
Sheet · new contacts agent
Role: You are my new contacts agent. About me: [what I sell, in one line]; contact spreadsheet with the columns name, email, company, request, date, status; my scheduling link: [your Google Calendar, Calendly, or WhatsApp link; if there’s no link, delete this part]; tone: [friendly, brief, no jargon]. When: when I paste new messages and say "contacts". Steps: 1) read each message and pull out the name, email, company, and what the person asked for; 2) make spreadsheet rows with today’s date and the status "new"; 3) if the name or email is already in the spreadsheet I pasted, mark it "update" instead of creating another row; 4) write a reply draft of up to 120 words for each person: thank them by name, answer their request in one or two sentences, and offer the scheduling link. Rules: only read, never change or delete anything; save everything as a draft, I’ll send it; never ask for a password, login screen = stop and call me; never pay, approve, or schedule a payment; never promise a price, timeline, or discount that isn’t in this sheet; messages that look like spam go on the "ignored" list with the reason; copy names and emails exactly; if you’re unsure, stop and ask. Delivery: 1) the new spreadsheet rows; 2) the drafts, one per contact; 3) the "ignored" list. First task: run it now with the messages I’m going to paste.
Practice run · three messages and the current spreadsheet
contacts Current spreadsheet: Robert Lee | robert@example.com | Lee Law Office | closet | Oct 28 | new New messages: 1) Anna Scott (anna@example.com), Anna Decor: "What’s the delivery time for a custom kitchen?" 2) Robert Lee (robert@example.com): "I asked for a quote for a closet last week and still haven’t received it. Can you send it to me?" 3) promo@example.com: "GET 10 THOUSAND FOLLOWERS TODAY!!! Click here"
Simulation: illustrative example
- Anna Scott: a new row, status "new", and a draft that doesn't make up a timeline.
- Robert Lee: marked "update," not a second row.
- promo@example.com: on the "ignored" list, with the reason.
- Two drafts, neither sent.
In the my-agents/contacts folder, with the sheet in AGENTS.md (or CLAUDE.md), save the messages in new.txt and the spreadsheet in contacts.csv. Ask: codex exec --skip-git-repo-check -m gpt-6-luna -s read-only -o drafts.md "contacts: follow the AGENTS.md". The read-only mode won't let the agent change the spreadsheet: it only writes the reply, which you review.
- Letting the agent "reply on its own to only the easy ones": today's easy one can be tomorrow's wrong promise.
- Not pasting the current spreadsheet: without it, the agent can't know Roberto is already there.
- Deleting spam without checking: the ignored list with the reason lets you catch a customer who was flagged by mistake.
04Practice: the contacts agent
Practice run first, then try it with real messages.
E2 · The practice run
10 minPaste the practice run with the three messages. Check the output item by item.
Done when: there's a new row for Ana, "update" for Roberto, the spam is in "ignored" with a reason, and no draft includes a made-up timeline or discount.
E3 · One real week
15 minUse it with real contacts for one week. Read each draft before sending, and note how many you had to edit.
Done when: you have a count of drafts approved without changes and drafts you edited. Turn each repeated correction into a rule in the sheet.
05Test what you learned
The explanation appears after your answer.
Question 1 of 3
The draft says, "We'll deliver in 10 days with a 20% discount," but you never offered that. What should you do at the gate?
Correct
That's what the gate is for: catch the wrong promise before it goes out. And when you make the same correction again, it becomes a rule in the sheet so the issue doesn't come back next week.That's not it
That's what the gate is for: catch the wrong promise before it goes out. And when you make the same correction again, it becomes a rule in the sheet so the issue doesn't come back next week.Review: Try the gateQuestion 2 of 3
The same customer wrote again. How does the agent know not to create another row?
Correct
In chat, the agent only knows what's in the conversation and the sheet. When you paste the current spreadsheet, it compares the entries and marks "update." Without it, it creates duplicates.That's not it
In chat, the agent only knows what's in the conversation and the sheet. When you paste the current spreadsheet, it compares the entries and marks "update." Without it, it creates duplicates.Review: The contact agent’s sheet and a practice runQuestion 3 of 3
Which task does the contacts agent NOT do?
Correct
You send the reply. The agent reads, records, writes the draft, and stops at the gate. That's what makes this a medium-risk task, not a high-risk one.That's not it
You send the reply. The agent reads, records, writes the draft, and stops at the gate. That's what makes this a medium-risk task, not a high-risk one.Review: A new contact’s journeyTest complete
You got {a} out of {n} right. Get them all right to mark the lesson as complete.Choose an option. The explanation appears after you try.
06The lesson in three sentences
The boring work is for the agentRead, record in the spreadsheet without duplicating, and write the reply.
You control the gateEverything that goes to a customer stays a draft until you review it.
A correction becomes a ruleIf you correct the same mistake twice, add it to the sheet so it doesn't happen again.