I’m kind of obsessed with reading newsletters, but the problem is they take up too much of my time. I’ve tried services like Readwise and their new Reader app, which are great but a little expensive for what they offer. Plus I ended up not using them as frequently as I expected.
My inbox was full of emails from tech guys, philosophy gurus, random people I find interesting, YouTubers, Podcasters, Authors etc. I once followed the ‘unsubscribe from any email that doesn’t resonate’ philosophy, but then I’d lose out on that person’s insights forever (one bad email doesn’t make a bad newsletter).
I’m also very particular about keeping my inbox tidy and archiving emails appropriately – getting to inbox zero is something I try to do at least once a week.
Then last week, I had a very simple thought: why don’t I just create a new email account just for newsletter! Gmail is 100% free, has virtually unlimited storage for email, and works with all my current workflows.
So now I have a Gmail account for all my newsletters. Every time one pops up in my main email, I either update my details or unsubscribe and resubscribe with my new address. I’m not sure why it took me so long to work this out. Now I can dip in and out of that inbox when I have time, mainly in the evenings and occasionally first thing in the morning.
I’m not concerning myself with deleting any emails. I just use the inbox as a newsfeed and pick the headlines that I find interesting.
Keeping my main inbox for the most important emails will save me hours of time a week. I’m now considering setting up another inbox for account signups, such as Twitter and Amazon, and keeping my main email for real work.
One step at a time, though.
P.S. I use Google Workspace as my main email and have dozens of domains (for different businesses) all connected to the one account. It may sound like chaos, but it works really well for me.
I also have an iCloud email which I use the @me.com extension for – because I’m old skool. 😉
P.P.S – Who remembers Apple’s MobileMe? It came out in July 2008! 🤯
