If you thought Gen Z was all about revamping fashion, you're dead wrong! There are many things it promises, and one of them is putting an end to the stressful emailing system.
The complaints about Gen Z not agreeing with the views of the previous generations aren’t new. Still, the one thing older gens can’t bicker about is that thanks to the newer folks, they can finally bid adieu to outdated emails.
Maxim Ilyahov/Unsplash | Studies indicate Gen Z is all set to replace traditional emailing with text and calls
Yes, the era of emails has almost reached its dusk, and if you don’t believe us, have a look at what popular studies have to say.
Studies that prove Gen Z has an aversion to emails
In 2020, a survey conducted by Creative Strategies (a consulting firm), stated that most of the population above 30 years of age preferred using emails for all their communications. The same research said that people under 30 were more inclined towards Google Docs, Zoom, and iMessages.
When asked why there was a generation gap in primary work tools, Adam Simmons, an LA-based video production company owner, said it was due to the unnecessary stress emails brought along. He highlighted that your bills and all other significant stuff popping up in one specific app stresses you out when you're working. Plus, the constant fear of missing out on an email, especially an important one, gives you chills. What was worth noting was that Simmons wasn’t the only one who disliked email.
Brett Jordan/Unsplash | With more people complaining about emails being a distraction and difficult to manage, it seems it’s the end of their era
In April, several New York Times followers responded outrageously to a reader's callout on pandemic burnout. A reader called the email "an eternal chore," whereas another compared it to getting stabbed to do more work. New York-based architect, Vishakha Apte, wrote that whenever she responded to emails amid working, she forgot what she was about to do next. Many other readers also called emails distractive.
That's not it! As unbelievable as it may sound, writer Cal Newport has even written a book on this very problem. In March 2021, Newport released his book – A World Without Email: Reimagining Work in an Age of Communication Overload – to motivate people to ditch emails. In an interview with journalist Ezra Klein, he disclosed that he’d been talking about getting rid of emails since 2016.
A 2017 study further revealed that there were at least 199 emails in an average human's inbox. Imagine the hike in this number post the pandemic and the work-from-home schedule! It would undoubtedly be at an all-time high, don't you think?
People who made us believe in a world without emails
On the one hand, where most millennials voted for emails, Harrison Stevens (a Gen Z rep), took the initiative to show the world what an email-free environment looks like. The 23-year-old founded a vintage clothing company that only used text and calls for communication.
Though it was pretty intimidating at first, eventually, it worked out for him. Another Gen Z flag-bearer, Aurora Biggers (who recently graduated as a journalist), used texts for communication with everyone in her network.
The 22-year-old said she disagreed with email being the primary form of communication for her generation. She said it could be used from time to time, but couldn’t be the only way of communication.
Adem AY/Unsplash | Bloggers and modern workforce is increasingly relying on texts and calls for collaboration
TBH, we’re caught between the pros and cons of both – a world with email and one without it. Which one would you prefer?
