E-mail newsletters are having a moment. Once the preferred way to ingest regular doses of interesting readables, they seemed to lose ground over the past couple decades to the likes of RSS feeds, social media, and other newfangled forms of digital infotainment.
But in today’s world of too much to read and too little time, it’s the tried-and-true newsletter that’s making a comeback. It’s compact. It’s focused. It’s just what we need.
If you’re looking to get caught up, get smarter, and get better at what you do, here’s a shortlist of free newsletters that deserve a spot in your inbox.
NextDraft
Ten items. That’s all you get from self-described human algorithm Dave Pell.
Pell mainlines around 75 news sites every morning and rounds the most interesting bits up into the NextDraft newsletter, a 10-item, Monday-to-Friday list with the most impactful stuff at the top and only slightly less impactful stuff as you work your way down.
It’s a nice mix of world affairs, human-interest stories, innovation news, and amusing oddities. Consider it required reading for making small-talk at your next cocktail party, whenever that may be.
NoDesk
Remote working is here to stay, and whether you’ve been office-less for years or you’ve been forced into it recently, the weekly NoDesk newsletter splits time between interesting remote-job openings and useful articles about how to make the most of remote work.
So, come for the job listings. Stay for the insight. It’s also a great addition to your inbox if you’re curious about remote work but—somehow!—haven’t had the opportunity to experience it yet.
How-To Geek
Your computer and phone are arguably your two most indispensable, modern-day moneymakers. Might as well learn how to use them more efficiently. Time is money, after all.
The daily How-To Geek newsletter serves up an easily-digestible assortment of tips and tricks covering popular software, devices, and services.
It’s not just a link-dump, either. You’ll find fun facts, tech-related cartoons, and quizzes,—and nostalgia-inducing profiles of long-lost tech by Benj Edwards (who’s also a Fast Company contributor).
Further
Are you a youthful mid-lifer looking for purpose and happiness? Me too, buddy. The weekly Further newsletter is for us.
Aimed at forty- and fifty-somethings, Further founder Brian Clark spotlights non-boring articles about how to better be healthy, wealthy, and wise —no small feat given the subject matter. The result is a nice shot of mid-week inspiration and re-centering.
1440
Just the facts, ma’am. If you’re looking to get caught up as quickly as possible, you detest clickbait, and you’re not big on opinion pieces, then the 1440 newsletter is the digest for you.
Delivered Monday through Friday, thos newsletter is chopped up into a few big stories, a handful of satellite goings-on from the worlds of sports, tech, business, and politics, and then rounded out with some miscellaneous items of intrigue.
It almost feels like . . . what were those paper-y things that got thrown in people’s bushes every morning? Like that, but much faster to read and without all the ink stains.