| name | Hook Library |
| description | Curated playbook for generating strong social-media hooks, opening lines, captions, and scroll-stopping intros based on the user's goal, platform, and psychological angle. Use this when the user asks for a hook, opener, first line, caption angle, stronger intro, better lead, more engaging start, or wants a post/video/ad to grab attention faster. Best for X posts, Instagram captions, TikTok/Reels/Shorts scripts, ad hooks, sales content, and creator content where the first line determines whether people keep watching or reading. |
| emoji | 🪝 |
| version | 1.0.0 |
Hook Library
Use this skill to turn weak openings into scroll-stopping hooks.
This is a curated library of psychological hook patterns for social posts, short-form video intros, ads, captions, and opening lines. The goal is not to copy templates blindly — it is to choose the right psychological trigger for the user's intent, then adapt the wording so it fits their voice, niche, and platform.
When to Use This
Use this skill when the user asks for:
- a hook for a post, video, ad, caption, or thread
- a better opening line or first sentence
- a more engaging intro
- help making content more attention-grabbing
- multiple hook options for the same idea
- a hook matched to a platform like TikTok, Reels, Shorts, Instagram, X, YouTube, ads
Do not use this skill for full long-form article writing, email subject-line optimization, or headline work unless the user's real need is clearly the opening attention grab.
Core Operating Rule
Don't just hand over random hooks.
First identify:
- The content goal — clicks, watch time, trust, curiosity, envy, urgency, conversion
- The platform — X, TikTok, Reels, Shorts, Instagram caption, ad creative
- The tone — clean, edgy, founder-style, luxury, funny, direct, educational
- The proof level — can we make a bold claim, or do we need a softer version?
Then choose the category that matches the psychology.
Output Standard
Unless the user asks for only one, default to:
- 8–15 hook options
- grouped by 2–4 relevant categories
- each adapted to the user's topic
- mark the strongest 3
- if helpful, add a "safer" and "harder-hitting" version
If the user gives very little context, make a reasonable assumption and still produce options.
Quick Category Picker
| Goal | Best Category |
|---|
| Make them curious | Curious Creator |
| Make them feel like they're getting access | Gatekeeper |
| Build trust through social proof | Someone Showed Me... |
| Show a dramatic win | Transformation Result |
| Create regret/pain of not knowing sooner | Regret Reveal |
| Position against alternatives | Comparison |
| Make it feel accidental and low-pressure | Unintentional Find |
| Sell aspiration/lifestyle/status | Ragebait Flex |
| Fit a short-form trend format | Trend Hijack |
Workflow
1. Pick the psychological angle
Choose the best category based on the user's desired reaction.
2. Adapt the pattern to the niche
Replace generic references with the user's actual:
- product
- audience
- pain point
- transformation
- platform language
3. Tighten the wording
Prefer:
- specific nouns over vague claims
- strong verbs over passive phrasing
- short punchy rhythm over bloated wording
- spoken-language cadence for short-form video
4. Sanity-check credibility
If a hook makes a claim that sounds fake, either:
- soften it, or
- frame it as a story/opinion/observation instead of a fact
5. Match the voice
If the user sounds premium, don't give them sloppy hooks.
If the user sounds edgy, don't give them sanitized corporate copy.
Hook Categories + Library
1. Curious Creator
Use when: the goal is curiosity, disbelief, stoppage, or "wait, what?" energy.
Best for: demos, tool reveals, surprising facts, weird outcomes, fast scroll-stoppers.
Templates:
- How is this legal?
- Wait this can't be real...
- Yo what the f***...?
- This should be illegal but...
- I'm so confused right now...
- Wait... how does this even work?
- This makes no sense...
- I don't understand how this is possible...
- Okay but actually how...?
- This broke my brain...
- I've been staring at this for 10 minutes...
- Someone explain this to me...
- This can't be real right...?
- What am I even looking at...?
- Hold on... WHAT?
- I'm sorry but how...?
- This is actually insane...
- Wait did that just...?
- No way this is real...
- I refuse to believe this works...
- This has to be fake...
- Someone tell me I'm not crazy...
- Okay I need answers...
- This is actually breaking my brain...
- I can't stop watching this...
- Wait... that's not possible...
- How is nobody talking about this...?
- This is the weirdest thing I've seen...
- I don't even know what to say...
- This shouldn't exist but here we are...
Adaptation examples:
- "How is this legal? This AI built the landing page in 40 seconds."
- "Wait... how does this even work? I uploaded one photo and got 12 ad creatives back."
2. Gatekeeper
Use when: the content should feel exclusive, forbidden, insider, or behind-the-scenes.
Best for: industry secrets, private tactics, controversial reveals, premium-feeling content.
Templates:
- My developer told me never to share this...
- Deleted this 3 times but you need to see it...
- This got me fired but...
- I signed an NDA but f*** it...
- My boss doesn't know I'm posting this...
- They told me to keep this quiet...
- I'm not supposed to show you this...
- Breaking my contract to show you...
- My manager would kill me if he saw this...
- I could get in trouble for this but...
- They don't want you to know this...
- This is supposed to be internal only...
- I'm risking my job showing you this...
- They made us sign NDAs for a reason...
- I shouldn't be sharing this but...
- My team will hate me for posting this...
- This was behind a paywall until now...
- They're going to take this down soon...
- I have 24 hours before they find out...
- This violates company policy but...
- My coworker got fired for sharing this...
- I'm about to break a very expensive NDA...
- This is classified information but...
- I'm posting this before I get caught...
- My lawyer said don't post this...
- They paid me to keep quiet about this...
- I'm burning bridges posting this but...
- This leaks their entire strategy...
- I have insider access and this is wild...
- This shouldn't be public yet...
Rule: use carefully. If the user's brand is professional or trust-heavy, soften this category instead of making fake secrecy claims.
3. Someone Showed Me...
Use when: the hook should feel social, trusted, passed-along, or naturally recommended.
Best for: tutorials, tools, reviews, recommendations, educational content.
Templates:
- My friend showed me this and I'm obsessed...
- My roommate just showed me this...
- My coworker wouldn't stop talking about this...
- My boss uses this and won't shut up about it...
- My professor recommended this in class...
- My team lead showed me this yesterday...
- My mentor sent me this last week...
- My client showed me this during a call...
- My business partner found this and...
- My investor uses this daily...
- My co-founder showed me this...
- My manager swears by this...
- My CTO introduced me to this...
- My designer showed me this tool...
- My developer friend built this and...
- My marketing lead uses this for everything...
- My sales team discovered this...
- My assistant found this and now...
- My CEO uses this in every meeting...
- My advisor recommended this...
- My dad showed me this app...
- My brother uses this for his business...
- My sister works there and showed me...
- My cousin built this and...
- My girlfriend found this and...
- My best friend sent me this...
- My old colleague showed me...
- My ex-boss uses this now and...
- My classmate from [school] built this...
- My mastermind group uses this...
Adaptation example:
- "My designer showed me this tool and I genuinely can't go back."
4. Transformation Result
Use when: the user has a strong before/after, measurable outcome, or identity shift.
Best for: productivity wins, client growth, lifestyle changes, business proof.
Starter templates:
- I quit my 9-5 after using this for 30 days...
- This helped me read 50 books in 3 months...
- I stopped doom scrolling completely with this...
- This helped me land 100+ clients in 30 days...
- I turned $500 into $10K using this app...
- This cured my procrastination permanently...
Instruction: expand this category custom for the user's niche. The point is the dramatic end state, not the exact template.
Build formula:
I went from [before] to [after] because [mechanism]This helped me [specific win] in [specific time]How I [dream outcome] without [common pain]
5. Regret Reveal
Use when: the hook should create pain around wasted time, money, effort, or delay.
Best for: educational content, lessons learned, tools that replace expensive/slow methods.
Templates:
- I wasted $10K before finding this...
- 3 years and nobody told me about this...
- Why didn't anyone show me this sooner...
- I could've saved 2 years if I knew this...
- I spent $50K on courses before finding this free app...
- 5 years of struggle ended when I found this...
- I wish I had this in college...
- I paid a developer $20K for what this does for free...
- 10 years and I just found out about this...
- I burned $100K on ads before discovering this...
- I suffered for 6 months before someone showed me this...
- Why did it take me this long to find this...
- I dropped out because I didn't know this existed...
- I spent 4 years doing it the hard way...
- I lost $50K because nobody told me about this...
- I could've retired 5 years earlier with this...
- 2 years of therapy vs 2 weeks with this app...
- I paid $500/month for what this does better...
- I wasted my entire 20s not knowing this...
- 6 months of pain before I discovered this...
- I would've kept my business if I had this...
- I dropped $30K on a bootcamp before finding this...
- 3 failed startups before someone told me about this...
- I could've avoided burnout if I knew this existed...
- I spent 10 years broke before finding this...
- Why isn't this taught in school...
- I fired my entire team before discovering this...
- I almost gave up before finding this app...
- 7 years of trial and error vs 7 days with this...
- I rebuilt my life after finding this...
Rule: keep regret believable. If the proof isn't strong, dial down the numbers.
6. Comparison
Use when: the user wants to position something against a category, old method, or competitor.
Best for: product marketing, app/tool content, alternatives, replacement framing.
Templates:
- I tried 15 apps, this is the only one that worked...
- Everyone uses ChatGPT, I use this instead...
- Notion costs $10/month, this is free and better...
- I switched from Duolingo to this and finally learned...
- Tried every budgeting app, this is the only one I kept...
- Everyone pays for Canva Pro, this does more for $0...
- I ditched my $300/month gym for this app...
- Tested 20 productivity apps, only this one stuck...
- Everyone uses Grammarly, this caught 3x more mistakes...
- I replaced my $500 course with this free app...
- Tried therapy for 2 years, this app did more in 2 weeks...
- Everyone swears by Spotify, but this changed my life...
- I quit my $200/month trainer for this...
- Tried Headspace, Calm, Insight Timer... this beats all of them...
- Everyone's on LinkedIn, I'm building my brand here instead...
- I canceled my $50/month subscription for this free alternative...
- Tried Duolingo for 3 years, learned more in 30 days with this...
- Everyone uses Google Docs, this is 10x better...
- I ditched my $1K/month agency for this app...
- Tried every habit tracker, this is the only one that worked...
- Everyone's paying for courses, I learned everything from this...
- I switched from iPhone Notes to this and never looked back...
- Tried 10 dating apps, this one actually worked...
- Everyone uses Zoom, but this saved my remote team...
- I quit my email marketing tool for this and saved $400/month...
- Tried Photoshop for years, this does it in seconds...
- Everyone's using Figma, designers are switching to this...
- I canceled Netflix for this app and I'm not kidding...
- Tried 5 CRMs, this one actually made me money...
- Everyone's on X, but I grew faster on this platform...
Instruction: if direct competitor naming would be risky or weak, use old way vs new way instead.
7. Unintentional Find
Use when: the message should feel low-pressure, accidental, authentic, or serendipitous.
Best for: softer discovery content, creator posts, recommendation content, de-salesified positioning.
Templates:
- I wasn't even looking for this but...
- Downloaded this by mistake and now I can't delete it...
- Accidentally discovered this and it changed everything...
- I clicked the wrong ad and found this...
- Stumbled on this at 3am and now...
- I was looking for something else and found this instead...
- Accidentally opened this app and...
- I downloaded this as a joke but...
- Found this by accident and now I use it daily...
- I wasn't supposed to find this but...
- Clicked on this randomly and it saved my life...
- I discovered this while procrastinating and...
- Found this in the comments of another video...
- I was bored and downloaded this, now...
- Accidentally swiped on this and it's a game changer...
- I found this while doom scrolling at 2am...
- Downloaded this for fun, turns out...
- I wasn't planning on trying this but...
- Found this while looking for something completely different...
- I discovered this during a random Google search...
- Clicked on this thinking it was something else...
- I found this in my spam folder and...
- Downloaded this on a whim and now...
- I was skeptical but tried it anyway and...
- Found this while deleting apps and kept only this one...
- Ignored this for months until I actually tried it...
- Discovered this while cleaning out my phone...
- I almost deleted this but opened it first and...
- Found this in my downloads from 6 months ago...
- I wasn't even trying to find a solution and this showed up...
8. Ragebait Flex
Use when: the user wants aspirational, envy-inducing, status-heavy, lifestyle-forward framing.
Best for: creator brands, money content, freedom content, lifestyle proof, automation flexes.
Templates:
- How I work 4 hours a day without burning out...
- POV: You just made $10K in your sleep...
- Day in my life using only this app...
- How I travel full-time and still run my business...
- I haven't set an alarm in 6 months because of this...
- How I automate my entire income with one app...
- POV: You just quit your 9-5 using this...
- Living my dream life because I found this app...
- How I read 100 books a year without trying...
- I work from my phone and make 6 figures with this...
- How I stay in shape without going to the gym...
- POV: You just paid off all your debt with this...
- My entire morning routine is just this app...
- How I manage 3 businesses with zero stress...
- I retired at 30 because of this app...
- Living the laptop lifestyle thanks to this...
- How I learned 3 languages while working full-time...
- POV: You just automated your entire side hustle...
- I haven't been stressed in 90 days because of this...
- How I make passive income with just my phone...
- Running a 7-figure business from this one app...
- How I travel 6 months a year and work 20 hours a week...
- I deleted all my apps except this one...
- Living proof you don't need a degree with this app...
- How I maintain a 6-pack without meal prepping...
- POV: You just hit your first $100K year using this...
- I replaced my entire team with this app...
- How I wake up excited every day using this...
- Running my dream business from my bedroom with this...
- I haven't worked a 'real job' in 2 years thanks to this...
Rule: use only when the user's brand can support big energy. Avoid this category for sober B2B trust-building unless they explicitly want aggressive style.
9. Trend Hijack
Use when: the user wants hooks that fit current short-form content formats.
Best for: TikTok, Reels, Shorts, trend-based content, creator-style scripting.
Templates:
- Rumors are true... (with trending audio)
- Using the 'hear me out' trend to show you this app...
- Doing the 'get ready with me' but make it productivity...
- The 'tell me without telling me' version for this app...
- POV trend but it's actually useful this time...
- Using the 'day in the life' trend to flex this app...
- The 'things I wish I knew sooner' trend led me here...
- Caught in 4K using this app instead of working...
- The 'millionaire morning routine' but it's just this app...
- Using the 'what's in my bag' trend but it's what's on my phone...
- The 'rate my setup' trend but showing this instead...
- Doing the 'unboxing' trend with a digital product...
- The 'therapy vs this' trend is so accurate...
- Using the 'before and after' trend but for my productivity...
- The 'things that just make sense' trend brought me here...
- Doing the 'not fake' trend: this app is underrated...
- The 'green screen' trend showing my app analytics...
- Using the 'storytime' format to explain how this saved me...
- The 'wait for it' trend but it's actually worth the wait...
- Doing the 'duet' trend but with my own app results...
- The 'photo dump' trend but it's screenshots of this app...
- Using the 'transition' trend to show before/after...
- The 'top 3' trend but it's features of this one app...
- Doing the 'ranking' trend for apps in this category...
- The 'this or that' trend but it's old way vs this app...
- Using the 'put a finger down' trend for app users...
- The 'outfit of the day' but it's my app stack...
- Doing the 'reset routine' trend with just this app...
- The 'glow up' trend but it's my business metrics...
- The 'trend remix' but with real product proof...
Rule: don't force stale trend language if it already sounds dated. Use the format, not cringe imitation.
Appendix: 5 High-Performance Hook Insights
| Hook Type | Key Principle |
|---|
| Story Opener | Use specific details, not vague claims |
| Relatable Struggle | Emotion in delivery matters enormously |
| Bold Claim | Contradict common advice |
| Curiosity Gap | Add interactive elements |
| Transformation Tease | Make it feel achievable |
Response Patterns
If the user says: "Give me hooks for this"
Return:
- Best-fit categories
- 8–15 adapted hook options
- Top 3 recommendation
- Optional platform-specific rewrites
If the user says: "Make this more engaging"
- Diagnose why the current opener is weak
- Rewrite it in 3–5 hook styles
- Explain which one is best and why
If the user says: "Write a hook for my reel / TikTok / short"
Bias toward:
- shorter rhythm
- spoken cadence
- sharper emotional contrast
- cleaner first 3 seconds
If the user says: "Write hooks for my ad"
Bias toward:
- pain
- interruption
- specificity
- believability
- quick relevance to the target audience
Anti-Patterns
Do not:
- dump raw templates with no adaptation when the user gave context
- use fake insider/illegal/NDA framing for brands that need credibility
- make unbelievable income or outcome claims unless the user explicitly wants aggressive stylization
- give 20 versions that all sound the same
- force profanity or hype if the user's voice is cleaner
- confuse hooks with full captions, full scripts, or complete posts unless the user asked for those too
Quality Bar
A strong hook should do at least one of these immediately:
- create curiosity
- sharpen stakes
- imply status
- show contrast
- promise transformation
- trigger recognition ("that's me")
If the result sounds generic, vague, or like obvious AI copy, rewrite it shorter and more specific.
