Shawn Blanc on taking an email break -
I’m thinking we should all take a break from email for 30 days. Those we have to communicate with we could call or talk to in person. Those we don’t have to work with wouldn’t be able to infringe on our time because they don’t have our phone numbers. And we may just end up having meaningful dialog with our friends and family instead of keeping in touch by sending shallow links to funny YouTube videos.
What say ye?
While these are all flaws of email, I don’t necessarily agree that abandoning email for telephone calls is a step in the right direction. Part of the reason I love email is because I’m not always available. With phones, anyone who has my number has a direct line to me at all times. Yes, certain people deserve the right to contact me at any time, but they are few and far between.
Email, on the other hand, doesn’t require both parties being ‘available’ at any point in time. I can email you whenever and you can get back to me whenever. And the best part is that I never feel like I’m interrupting you. Or actually, maybe that’s the problem.
Of course, the irony is that people will email Shawn their thoughts on this…
