WILD EMAILS: Coyote Email 7-Year Anniversary

Last year, on 5/14/24, I had a memory pop up on my camera roll. 

It was two wild and unprofessional emails sent 5/14/18 to the entire Chicago office of Coyote by an employee who had been fired.

They were heinous. They called out folks, including this individual’s manager and teammates.

They were also hilarious. So I decided to put them on X.

The next morning, I was featured in the FreightCaviar newsletter.

I had been eyeing FreightCaviar for some time and had planned to reach out to ask to be a contributor. This was our intro.

Now, one year later, I’ve been making memes and even launched my own recruiting firm, Landing Talent & Advisory! The internet is a fascinating place. I encourage you to put yourself out there more!

Now, first off. In regard to the emails.

Don’t send out a public blast to a company with nearly 2,000 people. It will destroy your career, regardless of whether you were actually wronged or not.

It will spread like wildfire. We’re still talking about it today, and everyone who got it still remembers it.

I remember when I got the emails. I was on the Coyote Carrier Floor and the first one landed in my inbox. At first, I thought it was directed at me, even though I had no problems with this individual. I was confused, I got nervous, I read it twice and saw it was addressed to the entire Chicago office. I stood up and saw everyone looking around with the same expression on their face. “Holy sh*t” 

Then the second email landed 2 minutes later. It was certainly a memorable day at the office.

That being said, this individual was essentially caught stealing commission once, given a warning, then caught again and terminated. 

3 lessons

1. Don’t send a company-wide email
2. Companies, turn off your terminated employee’s email off first
3. If you have to say something to someone, best keep it in a private message.  It’s better to just let things go. But, if you have to do it, don't make it public. You’ll always be viewed as in the wrong