Insights on Work at Amazon

Amazon is peculiar. This post provides this one individual perspective on how, why and how much peculiar this company can be to work for and why that is an amazing thing for so many people. It's not for everyone - As Jeff Bezos once famously said (forgive me if I'm paraphrasing) 'You can work hard, long or smart - At Amazon you can pick any three!" If you're not here to raise the bar or you don't care to work hard, you'll be left behind.

I've been with Amazon now four years, which prompts this article. I've had four roles, reported to six bosses, lived in two states, been promoted once and traveled to a dozen countries. I've led big teams, accomplished bigger projects and delivered huge numbers - all in a day's work. I have largely ceased to care about business titles. I don't carry business cards. My custom suits sit in a spare closet, as my typical work attire is jeans and a T-shirt. I faithfully go into an office three days a week, but since I work only with our international businesses around the World, I also tend to work from home before and after those "work days". I try not to take meetings before 6 AM or after 9 PM local time, but I will admit I've taken (and led) 11 PM, 2 AM and 5 AM calls more than I care to recall. Here's a few things I've learned:

1. Treat today like Day 1. Know that someone at Amazon has done most of what you're trying to do before and they probably figured out how to do it better. Seek them out. LEARN from them. Improve on their best practices. Along the way, you'll probably have a new leader pretty soon. They'll reset the world and screw up half the things that were working in the name of making things better. Sometimes it'll work. Figure it out. Deal with it. Keep smiling. Move forward. Get it done. Day 1.
2. Find the right role for you. Amazon is so big as to have some really unique and niche roles. Find the one you can do better than anyone else, that you enjoy doing, and that they desperately need done well. That's YOUR sweet spot.
3. Build good mechanisms. A mechanism is a virtuous cycle. Define it clearly, get it running, ensure a clear communication and feedback loop. Run it. Improve it. Bulletproof it. Share it with others who can benefit from it.
4. Set boundaries. What hours will you work? What days? Will you relocate? Will you travel? How much? If you don't set boundaries, this company will consume you. I probably work too much, especially since I work with international businesses around the globe - Typical for me is 50-65 hours a week across 6 days during weeks I'm not traveling. I've gotten up from the dinner table mid-meal more than once to find a file or return an urgent email. I encourage you to be better at boundary-setting than I am.
5. Have backbone. If you don't stand up for yourself, pretty sure nobody will. Your career path and success is your own choice.
6. Be humble. Nobody likes a cocky SOB. You'll have to work with people and likely with other teams and BUs to get things done. Learn how to be humble but stay positive and assertive to drive toward your own goals.
7. Deliver Results. No excuses. You can and must get things done in Amazon. Success is about results not attempts. The world changes fast, but you have to get to your goals along that changing path.
8. Have an Exit plan. As much as you may come to enjoy Amazon, you won't survive it forever. Your total compensation may tip toward more stock grants as your career advances toward Director and VP, but live off your base salary (or some portion of it, if possible) and invest the rest wisely. This company will wear you out eventually - make sure you've got seven figures invested when that day happens so you can make choices you want rather than take bad options because you must.