Life after Thirteen Years at Amazon – Reflections After One Revolution Around the Sun

My last day at Amazon was over a year ago now after working in a variety of roles there for thirteen years. I have been taking some time to reflect on my first year outside of Amazon milestone. Many people ask me questions about how I feel about it on a regular basis so I thought I would share my answers.

First, this may seem odd but I don’t feel like I left Amazon. 

I was giving a paid talk at an Amazon event and someone asked what does it feel like to be gone. I answered honestly, “I feel like I am still a part of Amazon but just in a different way. Like I moved to another seat on the bus.” I am still a loyal customer (although I have branched out to explore a bit given a bit more time and less money). And with the pandemic, when I can’t get a delivery time. I have many dear friends who still work at Amazon and we catch up regularly. The NGO I founded, Open Hearts Big Dreams, is a small to mid-sized publisher of dual language books for kids on Kindle Direct Publishing; I continue to be a small seller as I have been since I started at Amazon. So the "Zon" continues to be a big part of my life in many respects. 

Second, I still use the Amazon approaches and learnings on a regular basis. 

Amazon has a way of doing things based on the leadership principles, key concepts and language. I embraced these when I was at Amazon and found they truly were integral to my teams’ success. However, I found their applicability to be even broader than the company itself. My NGO has tenets (a common approach for Amazon leaders) for what we do. I was coaching a younger leader on her social enterprise and advised her to put together a "working backwards document" – another Amazon tool for leaders. I stressed the importance of “mechanism rather than good intentions” (a familiar refrain for anyone at Amazon) for my two oldest who are now young adults. The research I did as the first head of Diversity at Amazon informs my approach to building teams as well as advising leaders who are struggling to make their teams more productive and inclusive. And data still drives my decision making whenever possible; just like it did at Amazon.

Third, a HUGE difference is now I drive all aspects not Amazon – with NO safety net

In my new reality, I need to use these same tools and approaches in a much less structured way. My roles are now defined by me rather than leveling guidelines or a job description written by my manager. I have to evaluate my own performance and set goals for myself and the organizations I lead. I find it both exhilarating and terrifying. I have no safety net of income and benefits and corporate structure. I am solely accountable for my success and failure although I still rely on collaborations in almost all my efforts. 

I truly believe my time at Amazon (and Sears and Baker &McKenzie before) prepared me well for this part of my journey. As a founder of both an NGO and now a consulting/speaking business, I look forward to using my Amazon experience to "work hard, have fun and make history" and drive catalytic positive impact in the world.

Learn more at https://ellenoreangelidis.com/ You can also find me on Twitter: ellenorea, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LEAD-LLC-Lead-Empower-Activate-Dream-Ellenore-Angelidis-121749049220884/ and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ellenore_angelidis/

I write more on Working Mother, Mom, Mayhem, Missions and More, Adoptive Families Circle, Melting Pot Family, and my personal blogs: Balancing Motherhood and Career and Ethiopian Ties.