Do you remember when changing telephone providers meant getting a new phone number?
Sorry. Sprint owns this phone number. If you are moving to Verizon, you will need to get a new one.
I still remember my old number too.
Why did it change?
Because losing your phone number was horrible!
So why do we do the same thing with our emails?
"Oh don't worry about that! Google's email is free! And they will stick around!"
Sure. Until that changes. I just lost my Google-backed university email (and all history) after almost 15 years of history. I may still be a little salty.
Set up your email so that you can take it somewhere else if you need to. You probably will!
Don't give Google your phone number and trust them with it.
You need to future-proof your social network.
That's why we say cancel GMail! Use your own domain. That way you can take it to another email provider if needed.
You may have heard before "your network is your net worth."
Stay in control of your future. Stay in control of your network!