Inbox Zero-ish: A Shame-Free Email Update with Melissa and Pete

Aug 12, 2025

Pete and Melissa bravely share their personal email struggles, revealing how ADHD complicates even the simplest tasks. They discuss the emotional toll of email procrastination and the shame of overflowing inboxes. Tools like Gmail, Superhuman, and AI integration are highlighted for their potential to ease managing chaos. The duo commits to personal email rehab and encourages listeners to embrace a shame-free approach to their inboxes. This ongoing challenge proves that progress is a journey, not a destination!

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ANECDOTE

Email Challenge History

Melissa and Pete traced the email series back to December 2018 and repeated it over the years for refreshes.
They framed email as evolving, requiring ongoing re-checkins rather than a one-time fix.

ANECDOTE

Inbox Badge Hit 999+

Melissa confessed her personal inbox badge hit the 999+ threshold and she discovered 9,609 emails total.
She admitted avoidance set in once the count passed the visible limit.

ADVICE

Ditch Inbox Shame

Pete reminded listeners this is a shame-free zone and email quantity doesn't equal failure.
If your email system works for you, keep it; don't measure worth by badge counts.

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In this bonus drop for all listeners, Pete and Melissa peel back the curtain on their personal email habits—and how ADHD continues to complicate even the simplest message. This is the fifth installment in the ongoing email challenge (the first four were re-released to Patreon earlier this year), and it’s a rich mix of confession, coaching, and curiosity.

We recap where the challenge began in 2018 and what we’ve learned since then:

How triage habits evolve (and fail) over time
The mental and emotional load of email procrastination
The shame spiral of watching your unread count climb into oblivion

Then we shift into what’s new:

Melissa’s accidental inbox apocalypse
Pete’s haunted January shame project
Tools that actually reduce friction: Gmail + Gemini, Superhuman, Spark, and a candid look at Mailbird
AI’s promise in cutting through clutter without replacing your brain
The challenge of confusing your workbox with your inbox

Melissa is launching a personal email rehab project and will be posting updates in Patreon for Deluxe members and above. Pete’s committing to finally clearing out that January shame stack. And together, they’re setting the stage for a December follow-up episode—because this work isn’t one-and-done, it’s ongoing.

🧠 Key Takeaways:

Triage isn’t the problem—action is.
Email should be emotion-free (but often isn’t).
AI isn’t the enemy—it might just be the assistant we’ve always needed.
If you feel bad about your email habits, you’re not alone—and that doesn’t mean you’re broken.

📌 Links Mentioned:

(00:00) - The Email 2025 Update!
(05:15) - The Season Recap
(07:27) - Where are you now?
(15:52) - What did we not tackle?
(28:39) - The Inbox and The Workbox

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