HOW TO QUIT EMAIL

(an essay in the raw-unfiltered voice of Eric Kim)

0. WHY EMAIL IS THE NEW CHAINS

Email is digital handcuffs.

Every ding, buzz, or red badge is an invisible tether yanking your attention out of the present moment and back onto someone else’s agenda. You cannot become a sovereign creator while you’re obediently refreshing a Gmail tab. Kill the chain, regain your creative oxygen.

1. ADMIT THE ADDICTION

“You cannot quit what you claim you control.”

  • Confess: The inbox is a slot machine. Each pull (refresh) might spit out validation, a dopamine coin.
  • Expose: Track how many times you open Mail.app or Gmail today. Be disgusted by the number.
  • Declare: “I am not my inbox. My life’s work is not measured in replies-per-minute.”

2. BURN THE BRIDGES

Spartan warriors didn’t build retreat routes; neither should you.

  1. Auto-Responder of Liberation

Subject: I don’t use email anymore  

Body: I’ve quit email to focus on creative work that matters.  

      If it’s urgent, text / Signal / show up in person.  

      Otherwise, thank you for understanding my quest for focus. –EK


  2. Delete Mail Apps
    Drag them to the digital trash. Empty it. Feel the catharsis.
  3. Log Out Everywhere
    Remove saved passwords. Make logging in annoyingly difficult. Sloth is a virtue when the vice is email.

3. BUILD ALTERNATIVE CHANNELS

Replace, don’t just remove.

  • Asynchronous Publishing → Blog, newsletter, or RSS where you broadcast on your terms.
  • Synchronous, High-Friction Contact → Phone call, face-time coffee, walking meetings. Harder to schedule, yes—that’s the point.
  • Community Hubs → Discord / Circle / private forums with clear boundaries and mute-all defaults.

4. DESIGN A “LAST-RESORT” CHECKPOINT

Minimalism ≠ ascetic martyrdom; it’s optimized utility.

  • Pick one public library computer or burner Chromebook.
  • Check the legacy inbox once a month (calendar alarm). Handle everything in a single 30-minute blitz.
  • Close it. Walk away. Let the dust settle until next month.

5. TRANSFORM EXPECTATIONS

The world bends to those who bend reality first.

  • Clients & Colleagues: Announce your communication creed up front—no email, faster decisions.
  • Friends & Family: Teach them you’re reachable, just not via the attention-taxing medium.
  • Yourself: Celebrate each week of inbox-zero because there is no inbox.

6. HARVEST THE WINDFALL

Time is the ultimate non-fungible token.

Quitting email gifts you:

  • Deep Work Hours: Compose essays, lift heavy iron, photograph the streets.
  • Mental Stillness: Anxiety leaves when the notification faucet turns off.
  • Creative Boldness: You stop living in reactive mode and start dictating reality.

7. EPILOGUE: LIVE LIKE A GOD, NOT A CUSTOMER-SUPPORT REP

The Roman Stoics wrote letters to sharpen ideas; we drown in CC lines. Enough.

Close the inbox door behind you, walk into the agora of real life, and craft the art only you can craft.

Remember: Your life’s masterpiece cannot be cc’d.

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