Is your email address holding you back?

Not everyone sheds their adolescent email addresses when they enter adulthood

For a critical span in the 1990s and 2000s, Norel Mancuso was dubbed Dlyte23, a nod to DeeeLite, the one-hit-wonder band that brought us the thumptastic “Groove Is In the Heart,” and helped shape an era of New York club culture. It was how Ms. Mancuso was known on email, AIM, Myspace, even in person.

Then in 2004, as a UCLA student, she attended a job fair to introduce herself to prospective employers. When impressed recruiters asked how they might get in touch with her, Ms. Mancuso felt a sudden rush of embarrassment. Under her breath, she shamefully spelled it out: Dlyte23@hotmail.com. “That’s when I kind of realized, man, I better actually get a professional email address,” she said, “because Dlyte23 is not going to land me the job of my dreams.”

Ms. Mancuso was one of the smart ones. A quick glance at any group email confirms what recruiters and hiring managers know too well: Not everyone sheds their adolescent email addresses when they enter adulthood, instead maintaining allegiance to digital monikers based on the music, videogames and contraband they once held dear.

Though rebranding yourself online can be a pain (as those who’ve been through the ordeal of changing their contact info know), the practice is often better for your career trajectory, said Chris Swanson, a career and college counselor at Bremerton High School in Washington state. “It’s just like the idea that a handshake and eye contact makes a good impression. That’s the first thing that comes across someone’s desk.” Even so, many Americans still use curious handles for professional exchanges, either by virtue of inertia or nostalgia or because they’ve never had an employer-issued handle and don’t know any better—they only know Dave Matthews rules.

Whether you’re advising your children on their digital identities or you’re stuck with a compromising handle yourself and have realized it’s time to adopt a new email address, here are five rules professionals say you should consider. Keep It Simple

“People want to see you at your most professional,” said Tiffany Bigham, a work-based learning specialist at Seattle’s Garfield High School. “If they have you at bigbootymama95@hotmail, they’re going to think a differently of you.” Ms. Bigham suggests a direct approach: Use a simple combination of your name—first and last, or initials if necessary. Then step away from the keyboard. Don’t Try to Be Funny

In 1994, John Ross Bowie, now starring in the ABC sitcom “Speechless,” was a temp at Scholastic’s internet division. Knowing nothing about the internet, he let his office manager—“a brash young aspiring actor with a full head of hair named Rob Corddry”—pick out his email: hate666@aol.com. Mr. Bowie stuck with it for a little more than a year before wisely letting it go. “It was becoming clear that the internet was here to stay,” he said, and that email addresses would soon become standard on resumes. “As I was temping throughout my 20s, I really had to change it.” It’s Not a Numbers Game

If all reasonable combinations of your name have been seized, add a few digits. But don’t go crazy, Ms. Bigham said, or your email could look like a randomly generated spam account and be quickly dismissed.

Pick the numbers carefully. Mackenzie Moore, a recruiter for a hospitality company, said some digits can inadvertently convey false information to employers. “Let’s just make up a name— KaitlinSmith1997. That tells me this person is just about 21 years old,” she said. “That person could be 50. But I’m going to assume, based on the 1997, she’s 21.” Stay Off Drugs

Ms. Moore said she sees all manner of questionable email addresses, but the most common issue is inappropriate drug references—plenty of 420s. “If you want to go take psychedelics at Burning Man on the weekend, I don’t care,” she said. “But why would you use that email when trying to get a job?”

What’s acceptable varies wildly by industry. When Ms. Moore was a recruiter for tech startups, she’d often refuse to consider applicants with drug-related handles. Not only do the emails reflect questionably on a candidate’s judgment, but passing them along to an employer could reflect poorly on Ms. Moore, too. Move On From AOL It might be ironic to send missives from @aol.com, but it doesn’t suggest an exceedingly tech-savvy candidate. Actually, “It weirds me out,” said Ms. Moore. “Why are you still using AOL? Gmail is definitely the winner.” Don’t even get her started on Hotmail. When updating a résumé it’s a good time to evaluate if an email address seems dated, especially if applying for a tech gig.

“I left AOL over 20 years ago, and stick to fairly professional email addresses” said Bowie.

If you’re in need of a new email handle, ask someone you respect how they might respond to your potential address, said Mr. Swanson. Of course, if you’re retired, emailing your golfing buddies as RadGranddad420 is just fine.