I have a similar policy. Upon receiving an email that makes me hyperventilate even a little, or sets my pulse racing just a bit, by all means draft a reply immediately -- frequently emotional and full of invective -- but the set it aside for at least 24 hours. 48 in more severe cases. Then, and only then, re-read the message that got me all hot and bothered in the first place, re-read my draft reply (assuming I did that) and then redraft as needed before hitting "Send".

I call this my "24-hour Rule" and apply it always.

Then there's the "Never Hit Send While After Even a Single Drink Rule"... but that's another thing for another day.

I also draft immediately. The facts are fresh and you're passionate, get it all down so you can sift through it later. I try to make this the "final" draft even though I'm committed to reviewing it later.

Later when I return to the draft the first thing I do is delete everything which can be removed without loss of context. This usually removes a lot of the pissed-off "Let me tell YOU something about YOU that YOU don't know!"* stuff. If it isn't directly substantive it's probably inflammatory.

After it has been boiled down to relevant content take a step back and try to reflect humanely. Think about every lesson in compassion you've experienced in your life. Look the text over; how would you react to this e-mail if it were sent to you? Is even it really productive? Is it necessary? If so, try to think of a couple genuinely positive aspects of the situation— insincerity is only going to cause more discomfort. If there's nothing positive it might be important to do some reflection about why that's the case.

Remove accusatory tone; if you're not the boss (and even so...) then you should almost certainly be using more instances of "we" than "you" both literally and figuratively. Find the unresolved issues and recommend solution, try to supply the beginning of a solution as a token of your good faith despite whatever issues have arisen.

Review the whole message from the perspective of the recipient once more, a bit later if time permits.

This has worked really well for me, sometimes surprisingly so; people have gone from completely irate to "Okay, I'll take care of A and B!" It's pretty crazy.

* Ron White reference

1. Does this have to be said?

2. Does it have to be said now?

3. Does it have to be said by me?

If you can't answer all three questions with a strong and affirmative yes, then delete the statement.

[1] "Do I speak at the right time, or not?

[2] "Do I speak of facts, or not?

[3] "Do I speak gently or harshly?

[4] "Do I speak profitable words or not?

[5] "Do I speak with a kindly heart, or inwardly malicious?

Depends on your measure of necessity to some extent but nonetheless there are many situations where you should say something but you're not required to.

But when it comes to important emails, I always leave the recipient field blank until I'm sure this is what I want to send.

"My eighth Rule. When you say, in your letter, “I enclose cheque for £5”, or “I enclose John’s letter for you to see”, leave off writing for a moment—go and get the document referred to—and put it into the envelope. Otherwise, you are pretty certain to find it lying about, after the Post has gone!"

[1] http://blog.paperblanks.com/2013/03/cross-writing/

It's that "April" sort of research one does, if you know what I mean.

Perhaps it'd be easier if a different coloured ink was used for the cross sentences?

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One thing which struck me is that his example numbering system had exceeded 22000, and I doubt he logged spam.

There was a lot of correspondence going around. In Carroll's time, good cities would deliver and pick up mail from your home four times a day. (And now plenty of people check their email less often.)

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/06/08/go-ask-alice-a-...

I don't do it that often, I think on average my friends who have moved away get 1 or 2 a year, but I usually include some extra stuff like a thumb drive with some music/mixes or a trinket I happened to buy that I thought someone would appreciate.

Also IMHO, there is also something sepcial about getting a package or letter in the mail that is unexpected and isn't a pre-approved credit card.

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Wonderland+Stamp+Case&t=ffcm&iax=1...

"A Postscript is a very useful invention: but it is not meant (as so many ladies suppose) to contain the real gist of the letter"

Interesting to see how society has changed in a hundred years. This would probably cause a bit of a fuss if it were written today.