Watch out! Your email address may give away your age – and no, it is not based on which domain you use.
One perplexed Reddit user has discovered her email address – which simply contained her full name with no letters or symbols – was somewhat of a mystery to her young Gen Z colleague.
‘[They asked] “How did you get an email address like that??”‘ the confused user recalled in a post, after sharing her personal email with her young co-worker.
‘And I had to explain when Gmail first came out it was invitation only but I got one from a friend early on and my name was still available,’ she explained.
‘And oh my god I’m old,’ she wailed in realization.
She added that her younger colleague had been unaware that when Gmail first launched in 2004 you had to receive an invite from someone to snag an address.
‘I have a common name but this wasn’t my first email address I ever had,’ she added. ‘Just the one I’m still using.’
Users shared their own experiences of electronic mail showing – or giving away – their age.
Your email address may give away your age – and no, it is not based on which domain you use (stock image)
‘When I would have to go through resumes the email people used was always fascinating. But yep – I am “first name dot last name” old,’ one user wrote.
‘Ha! I thought it was just me. Everyone in our house — even the kids — has a Gmail account with their first initial and last name. One day, I hope the kids realize how cool that is,’ chimed in another.
Someone else replied with their age indicator: ‘Hotmail with my name no special characters. Of course using Hotmail period makes me a geezer. Had it since 97, not changing it.’
One Reddit user admitted it’s sometimes a curse having a simple Gmail address.
‘So many people accidentally sign up for things using my email address, at least once a week,’ they whined.
Gmail, which is Google’s email service, launched as an invitation only service in 2004, and remained that way until 2007.
However, email names and domains are not the only difference between Gen Z and older generations at work.
The younger generation have previously jumped on the ‘quiet quitting’ craze to do the bare minimum at work, while others have said they’re ‘micro-retiring’ and taking months off at a time.
One perplexed Reddit user has discovered her email address – which simply contained her full name with no letters or symbols – was somewhat of a mystery to her young Gen Z colleague (stock image)
It comes as employers have cracked down on hybrid work, with Amazon announcing all staff must return to office (RTO) five days a week.
Many members of Gen Z are finding themselves working in the office full time for the first time – after starting their corporate careers during Covid.
And for some, it appears to have been too much – with young people going to extreme lengths to avoid a full day’s work sat down in an office at the desk.
On TikTok, people have even been sharing tips on how to avoid working at their desk, while others have documented days in their life doing little to no work.
One user @imperatressa, from Budapest, advised: ‘How to pretend you are busy at work? Just walk fast.’
She also told her fellow Gen Z-ers to keep ‘checking their watch’ as it’s something ‘only busy people do’, and have ‘loads of tabs open.’
