# Is this acceptable for a Work e-mail address? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 18, 2006, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205 "2006-08-18T09:44:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Harmonix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/1 "2006-08-18T09:44:52Z")
so, [Myname@gmail.com](mailto:Myname@gmail.com) is taken would [MyNameWork@gmail.com](mailto:MyNameWork@gmail.com) be considered a ‘professional’ e-mail address? ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/2 "2006-08-18T09:47:31Z")
Tried it with . in the middle? Or initiallastname, etc etc In my case I just don’t use anything based on my name because my legal name is 8 words long - but most people I know do one of these or just tack a number at the end of what they wanted to use (not 13 or 69!) ---
**Author:** ![indecisive1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/41988e/32.png) [@indecisive1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/indecisive1)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/3 "2006-08-18T09:50:00Z")
> [@Harmonix](#): > > so, > > [Myname@gmail.com](mailto:Myname@gmail.com) is taken > > would [MyNameWork@gmail.com](mailto:MyNameWork@gmail.com) be considered a ‘professional’ e-mail address? Does the word “Work” represent the name of the company you work for? If so, I think that it’s fine. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/4 "2006-08-18T09:54:51Z")
Nava, I tried all those things and I figured numbers would be unprofessional. > [@indecisive1](#): > > Does the word “Work” represent the name of the company you work for? If so, I think that it’s fine. No. It’s whats going to go on my resume. Alternatively I have my full legal name registered, but I hate my middle name! ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/5 "2006-08-18T10:45:13Z")
I found that if I’m after a UN that nobody else has taken, if initiallastname is taken, then I usually can get away with snlastname (first name starts with s, middle name starts with n). It’s not as unweildy as typing out my full name, but it’s still inoffensive and professional enough to use for official correspondance and resumes and the like. My first name is actually Siobhan, and I also used to use [siolastname@relevantdomain.com](mailto:siolastname@relevantdomain.com). Most employers who were interviewing me accepted it as a suitably professional email address, and a couple even applauded me for not having anything stupid like “[sexyletherkitty@hotmail.com](mailto:sexyletherkitty@hotmail.com)” at the top of my CV. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/6 "2006-08-18T10:55:34Z")
Unfortunately I have short monosyllabic first and last name. This means no obvious partitioning points, and using the initial tricks causes my username to fall under the minimum 6 letter limit for google. … sometimes I just hate my name Anyone else have an opinion on [MyNameWork@gmail.com](mailto:MyNameWork@gmail.com) ? ---
**Author:** ![Harmonix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/7 "2006-08-18T10:58:59Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Tried it with . in the middle? ) Oh, I would like to note that google treats “.” as a non-character. In other words, [MyName@gmail.com](mailto:MyName@gmail.com) = [My.Name@gmail.com](mailto:My.Name@gmail.com) = [M.y.N.a.m.e@gmail.com](mailto:M.y.N.a.m.e@gmail.com) ---
**Author:** ![Wallenstein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@Wallenstein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallenstein)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/8 "2006-08-18T11:00:26Z")
Even better, register your own domain name. then you can choose the first part of the address to match the situation it also means you can have extra info on a webpage at your name For example: Joanne Smith domain: [joannesmith.com](http://joannesmith.com) personal: [mail@joannesmith.com](mailto:mail@joannesmith.com) work: [contact@joannesmith.com](mailto:contact@joannesmith.com) web: [www.joannesmith.com/resume](http://www.joannesmith.com/resume) If you’re happy with a .net name, you can pick them up for $3-4 per year… the .com names are slightly more. Then all you’d do is have any mail to **[contact@joannesmith.com](mailto:contact@joannesmith.com)** forwarded to any account(s) you like (gmail, hotmail, whatever) I recently did this, and it’s v. nice to have the address "contact@e\_logic.co.uk for job applications etc. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/9 "2006-08-18T11:03:54Z")
I work with a lot of engineers and architects whose office email is (for a company called , say, "smith johnson and jones engineering, inc): smith-eng@something or smith-arch@something I like the format of “yourname-dash-profession”@something ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/10 "2006-08-18T11:28:07Z")
> [@e-logic](#): > > Then all you’d do is have any mail to **[contact@joannesmith.com](mailto:contact@joannesmith.com)** forwarded to any account(s) you like (gmail, hotmail, whatever) Not only that, but if you’re using Gmail you can then configure your Gmail account to send from your net-name email address - so you have all the advantages of Gmail, but with a totally different email address - a virtual mailbox. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/11 "2006-08-18T14:53:48Z")
I am not a Human Resources person, but I don’t think any gmail, yahoo, hotmail, or other freebie email-service addresses are professional-looking. ---
**Author:** ![StinkyBurrito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@StinkyBurrito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StinkyBurrito)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/12 "2006-08-18T15:05:04Z")
Like **e-logic** I dropped in to say that it is pretty easy to buy a domain name and create whatever email addresses you want. This is dependent on what company you work for or if you are self employed, though. But you could potentially have email addresses like ‘billing@harmonix.com’, ‘help@harmonix.com’, ‘president@harmonix.com’, ‘yourname@harmonix.com’, ‘engineer@harmonix.com’, ‘webmaster@harmonix.com’, etc. This would make it easy to separate out responsibilities/sort email, looks very professional, and is easy and fairly cheap to acheive. It would also give you the option to have a webpage in the future if you ever decide to go that route. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/13 "2006-08-18T15:38:49Z")
I don’t know what the rest of you folks get from your ISP, but mine handed out a decent array of potential email addresses / accounts which I can set up as I see fit. (Well, back when I first signed up, it was only one, but that was in the days when the 28.8K Modem and Navigator 3.0 ruled cyberspace). ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/14 "2006-08-18T16:19:12Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > I am not a Human Resources person, but I don’t think any gmail, yahoo, hotmail, or other freebie email-service addresses are professional-looking. :dubious: And why would that be? You expect every professional to have registered his or her own domain name? ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/15 "2006-08-18T17:17:22Z")
I’m with AHunter3. Any e-mail address that ends with yahoo or gmail or hotmail makes me instantly think “unprofessional”. Any 12 year old kid can have an e-mail address from one of these freebie places. If the individual is a contractor or self employed then it’s not that big of a deal, but if the company has more than one employee it really makes the company look bad. Any freebie e-mail address just screams “I’m not a real company, I’m just an idiot working out of my garage” to me. Considering the low cost of domain names, I think it’s well worth the 12 bucks a year or whatever it is they charge to give you a more professional look. I work in the high tech industry. Attitudes in other industries may be a lot different, ymmv, this is just IMHO, etc etc. Would I be interested in consulting services from some guy who is an expert in his field and just happens to work out of his home? Sure. Would I want to buy circuit boards from a company that doesn’t even have a “real” e-mail address? No freakin way. It depends on the type of business. ---
**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/16 "2006-08-18T17:41:18Z")
I think “work email” semantic might be derailing some people. When I hear “work,” I think official business. So the domain name would be the domain of the business and his name would be whatever standards that business uses. But the OP is putting this on a resume. You don’t want a prospective employer e-mailing you at work via your employer’s servers. In these cases, I think it’s fine to use any e-mail address so long as it’s not “cute,” e.g. “[xmendude329@hotmail.com](mailto:xmendude329@hotmail.com).” Personally, I would work on variations of the name utilizing initials, (allowable) punctuation, and a combination of first-middle-last names. I wouldn’t use “work” or numbers as a modifier if I could help it, but that’s mainly just personal preference. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/17 "2006-08-18T17:56:19Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > but if the company has more than one employee it really makes the company look bad. Any freebie e-mail address just screams “I’m not a real company, I’m just an idiot working out of my garage” to me. We’re talking about an E-mail address on a resume, so that’s an E-mail account that’s _personal_ but for _professional purposes_. In that case, I think it’s expected that a person’s not going to use the E-mail account supplied by his or her current employer. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/18 "2006-08-18T18:04:57Z")
I agree that hotmail, yahoo, aol and gmail addresses are bunk when it’s your company address…but the OP is actually asking about the personal address to use on his/her resume. I would think anything that’s not like “hotbabe12” or “carebear” is fine. Staying away from “myname##” is good too. Have you checked to see if you can get yourname or initiallastname @ your ISP yet, like someone suggested? ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/19 "2006-08-18T18:12:53Z")
I’m not wild about MyNameWork. Did you try My\_Name? Check the alumni page of wherever you went to college - many are offering forwarding addresses for life to their alumni. I have mymaidenname@mit-alum.mit.edu forever, which is particularly nice because it draws attention to the big name school on my resume. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2006, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205/20 "2006-08-18T18:38:22Z")
[QUOTE=acsenray] > [@](#): > > Originally Posted by **engineer\_comp\_geek** > > > [@](#): > > > > but if the company has more than one employee it really makes the company look bad. Any freebie e-mail address just screams “I’m not a real company, I’m just an idiot working out of my garage” to me. > > We’re talking about an E-mail address on a resume, so that’s an E-mail account that’s personal but for professional purposes. In that case, I think it’s expected that a person’s not going to use the E-mail account supplied by his or her current employer. I, too, was referring to email on a resume. **Your Name \** at least implies that you maintain a regular internet account, one for which you pay bills, one from which you could be suspended for inappropriate online behavior, and, insofar as it appears on your resume, one you expect to maintain for the foreseeable future. **[something@gmail.com](mailto:something@gmail.com)** or **[something@hotmail.com](mailto:something@hotmail.com)** … if I know absolutely nothing else about the entity behind such an address, my first thought is “spammer”, my second thought is “scammer”, and my third thought is “married person’s alias _du jour_ for doing personal ads with”, and it only gradually gets better from there. That may be totally unfounded and totally unfair, but I bet you it isn’t totally unshared, impression-wise, either. Freebie email accounts just scream “tawdry”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-acceptable-for-a-work-e-mail-address/369205.md?page=2)