Scheduling follow-up texts that get a yes/no
After a discovery call, the next bottleneck is usually a calendar, not a contract. Make the next step obvious.
Offer two windows, not an open question
“Happy to continue — does Tue 10–11 or Wed 2–3 work for a 20-min next step? If neither, reply with two times that do.”
Open-ended “when works?” creates homework. Two options create a reply.
Quiet proposal? Ask a useful fork
Instead of “circling back,” ask whether they want the full scope or a smaller first slice. Helpful beats needy.
Deliverable ready
When something is waiting on them: state what is ready, what you need, and by when — once. Then wait.
Five ready-to-edit texts (after-call, quiet proposal, scheduling, deliverable-ready, polite close).