If you haven’t already, read the About page to get a sense of what this website is about and what my purpose is in sharing it with you.
We have much to look forward to, but first let me say a hearty welcome for just stopping by.
I don’t have all the answers. But I hope to be able to inspire and motivate many to more purpose-filled and focused work (and leisure) by just using email for an increasing amount of communication and tasks related to our digital lives and businesses.
Below is a preview of some of the articles you can expect in the coming year. I can’t promise I’ll write all of them.
As I write each one, I’ll come back here and link to it, so if you don’t see it linked, well I haven’t written it yet. I may never.
That’s because I want you, the readers, to be a part of the direction of this website. You can ask me a question or comment about your own use of email (or lack thereof). When I get those, I’ll try to focus on your queries about email usage as a higher priority than my own agenda, whenever possible. Sometimes I may have to defer writing about your questions while I build up articles of foundational support first — so I can link to those in later answers and articles.
I’ll do my best, but I’m just a one-man band. While this is important to me, it’s not the only pizza in my oven right now. Thanks for your understanding about that.
Potential Future Articles about Email
Instant Messaging is no longer Instant
Differences between workplace messaging apps (like Slack) and Email
Using email as a reminder and productivity task list
Why you should never — and always — send emails to yourself
Thinking about communication: asynchronous vs synchronous
What’s the benefit of disposable email services?
How to be less annoying to your friends and family by email
Why avoiding web-based email clients makes you an email pro
10 things wrong with Gmail today
Folders vs Labels: The evolution of IMAP and its troubles
How to give out your email address at social events
What (really) is the JMAP email protocol?
How many personal email addresses are too many?
Why are business putting emoticons in subject lines? Should you?
Yahoo, Gmail, Outlook, Yandex, AOL, and iCloud: Pros and Cons
How to reintroduce natural friction into modern-day communication — and why
What is an ‘email client’?
You’re probably doing email folders wrong
A review of privacy-based Email providers: Fastmail, ProtonMail, and Tutanota
Is encrypted email necessary or useful in 2021 and beyond?
A history of the telegraph, telephone, voicemail, BBSs, forums, email, instant messaging, and what we can expect in the next 20 years
How to manage email subscriptions quick and painlessly so you can live life to the fullest
What’s the big deal about email newsletters? Plus or minus?
How important is it to own your own domain name for email purposes?
Turn off image auto-loading in your email client today
Is it safe to openly publish your email address on the internet?
Why email subject lines are your best friend in online communication
Social Media vs Email Groups
What’s with people going off the grid?
How to have a group discussion by email that beats one done in Slack
Group Messaging Apps vs Email: The many, many problems of group messaging apps
How to plan a vacation or a trip by email alone — and why it’s faster
Publishing a blog by email alone
Pen Pals: Are lengthy emails between friends and acquaintances a good use of our time?
How often should you ‘check’ email at work and in your personal life?
How to manage email on smartphones — and how not to
What age should a child have their own email address?
Archiving Emails vs organizing in folders: When to choose which and why
3 ways to share editable documents by email: choose one and stick with it
12 helpful email signatures that actually inform and add value
How to block someone on email
Why turning off conversation view can be a productivity power punch
The many things you can include in emails and how to do it right
Outlook and Gmail want to sort your email for you. Should you let them?
10 amazing email hotkeys that can make you an email wizard in 20 minutes
Are Gen-Y and Gen-Z email-impaired? 10 ways for them to jump on the email magic train
Two methods of replying to emails and how not to be unliked when using them
Sorting your inbox: thoughts on defaults and why we might consider alternative sorting options
The right way to use BCC (blind carbon copy) and why you should use it carefully
How not to get blocked by your own email provider
Why Slack is (probably) slowing down your small-to-medium business’s forward progress
Is using your Operating System’s built-in email client a good idea?
Should you apologize for ‘late’ replies? Probably almost never (unless it’s to your mom)
4 Amazing ways to follow-up on emails
A brief overview of DMARC, SPF, and DKIM
Never reply to emails on a smartphone
When should you move the group message conversation to email — and how?
Invoicing by Email: Best practices without using a SaaS
How to work offline effectively with email: 5 key benefits
Storing contacts: Where and Why?
7 ways email is like postal mail and 7 ways it is not
How private is email really?
Why the @ sign for email addresses is cooler, and more useful, than the @ sign for Twitter and Instagram handles
Why to be cautious about using a signature for personal email
How to win friends and influence people to use email more
Never use “Do Not Reply” email addresses in business. Here’s why.
Quick overview of GDPR and CCPA as it relates to email
Should you password-protect sensitive documents when sending by email?
POP3, IMAP, SMTP (and now JMAP): Ten minutes to email protocol understanding
5 business operations that email could easily replace
Will email be the last platform standing?
Is it okay to have secret email addresses almost no one knows about?
An email, and instant message, and a Zoom call walk into a bar…
Should you compose emails in your email client… or somewhere else?
Getting too many emails from someone? 5 clever tricks to handle it well and not be annoyed
Are read receipts still a thing?
10,000 emails in your inbox? Don’t delete and start over, but be free forever in 3 to 4 hours
Using email groups: tips and tricks for powerful collaboration
What apps are necessary on your phone? Can the web and email replace them?
Should I attach images inline or as separate attachments?
One reason why international travelers should seriously consider disconnecting email from their smartphones
What is batch processing? Why using it with email is more powerful than with anything else
The beauty and mystery of the inbox and why embracing it today can be your super power
Despite my love of email, I bet I get less of it than you do. Here’s why.
Using email as a knowledge base and data store: it’s easy and fun
Plain-text emails vs HTML emails: What should you write with?
The long, tired, proud, incredible journey of the Thunderbird email client
What’s so distracting and stressful about email? Hint: nothing (if you’re doing email correctly)
Should you retire an overused old email address — or restore it to its glory days?
Is spam really still a problem? Some easy wins for dealing with it.
Yes, Virginia, there is an email post office. It just doesn’t have a flagpole out front.
What’s the hubbub about having a ‘professional’ email address? Nonsense or big advantage?
Is your business signature getting you blocked from corporate email networks?
Please don’t send ‘greeting cards’ by email anymore; write emails instead
Is diplomacy and relationship improvement possible with texting and chatting? What about email?
7 attachments you should probably stop sending by email – but you don’t absolutely have to
Email fonts and why you don’t have to go blind reading (or sending) email
Email flags and what you’re probably missing to restore your sanity
How to give your email address to businesses – and when not to (a.k.a. ‘how not to make a scene in public’)
Mailchimp might be costing you money and customers — a look under Mailchimp’s hood
Vacation and Auto responders: Why they might be doing more hurt than help
Sending voice messages by email: pros, cons, and techniques
How to mange clients with email and not forced logins
You’re overthinking photo sharing with friends and family — and I can prove it
Never miss an important email ever again without an ounce of stress
C’mon, man. Email is as old as our president. You can’t be serious about just using email, are you?
Email segmentation has its place, but maybe you’re overthinking it
How to carefully back out of chat groups — and move some friends and contacts to email only
The .eml file format. Some interesting things to know about it.
Video by email: How services like BombBomb are making email more interesting
How much automation should you let your email client do on your behalf?
Five reasons why your business needs to stop tracking email opens this month
Is Email Snooze worth using? Some possible use cases.
Is help desk software necessary to manage customer support by email?
Bored with email? Let’s have fun with email headers and get wonky
It’s no longer cool to yank out phones to share contact info. Some workarounds.
Twitter vs Email: A curious deep dive into the mysterious world of tweets