I have been working at Amazon for the past year.

Specifically - Amazon Music.

For most of my career FAANG companies were a foreign concept, and after several unusually difficult interviews I was convinced they must be something special.

A common questions I get asked when taking calls with software engineers is: "What is it like working at Amazon"

People seem curious to know.

So this newsletter is going to be about clearing the air, and telling you everything I think you should know before shooting straight for a FAANG company.

Let's get in to it.

There is no "magic"

I get it. Exclusivity will always cause humans to have inflated expectations.

But here's a hard truth:

Harvard isn't that much better than other schools

A Bugatti isn't that much better than every other car

Working at FAANG isn't that much better than every other job

Like all things obtainable:

You get used to it.

Just because something is hard to access doesn't mean it is proportionally that much better.

Things that are notable about FAANG companies:

• Unusually high pay
• Difficult to get in to
• Proprietary systems inside

This is the main difference I notice.

But I would be lying if I pretended I didn't think there would be some "magic" that came along with the job.

With that being said these companies are still great places to work.

• You gain ton's of skills
• Hard interviews weed out lazy people
• The benefits, campuses, and opportunities within are hard to beat

But there is no magic.

There will be weeks where it is a ton of fun

There will be weeks where you hate what you're working on.

That's just the nature of it.

There Is Many Ways to Cut The Cake

Once you work at 3 to 4 companies one thing will become obvious:

There is no "best" way to do things.

School convinces you that there is one best answer to everything.

In math there is one solution.

In art they judge you based on their one metric.

On tests there is one correct multiple choice answer.

Life is not the same.

In life there can be one problem.

And that one problem can have infinite answers that are all correct.

This is apparent in business more than anything else.

Meta, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google all do things differently.

And they are all successful.

Amazon does things way different than all jobs I've had prior. It has its ups-and-owns, but it is worth noting.

It is worth being diligent about the companies you work for, and making sure that you agree with the way they operate.

Gratitude is all that matters

Growing up in the Midwest I thought $100k a year was mega-rich.

People working at Amazon make $350k a year still complain about small inconveniences, politics, and pay.

They never learned the golden rule:

Gratitude takes maintenance

Without firm reminders and active thoughts you will inevitably get used to everything you have in life. Don't try to fool yourself.

Odds are all of us have:

Clean, purified water

Abundant electricity provided to a warm home

Fast internet connection being beamed to our iPhones

And we all get upset as soon as one of them goes down.

To maintain gratitude you need to constantly experiment with less.

Only absence can give you perspective of presence.

Only dark can make you appreciate the light.

The reason I'm bringing this up when talking about FAANG companies is because I have never seen more people complain about being in such a fortunate situation.

High paying companies

With great benefits

And smart people

And more complaining than any company I've experience before.

It's okay to dream of being in the ivory tower, but be careful to not get caught up in the echo chamber that has been going on up there.

That is certainly true at FAANG companies.

Okay, enough rambling. Here is my main point:

FAANG will not make your life great.

No company, other person, experience, or thing ever will.

I've met miserable people at FAANG.

And the happiest person I knew working for $8.10 an hour.

If pay is what you're after:

FAANG is great for that

If you seek happiness at FAANG?:

I suggest you think twice, and look inward.

There are thousands of wonderful companies out there.

And there will forever be great work to be done.

It's not all at FAANG.

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The Actionable Advice

So after all this, what is the actionable advice?

Reframe how you view FAANG companies.

Things FAANG is good at:

• High paychecks
• Great benefits
• Hard workers

Things FAANG won't do for you:

• Long term fulfillment
• Magically make you better
• Show you a perfect well-oiled business

These companies all have their issues. There is nothing extraordinary that any of them did internally to get ahead. Just regular good business principles.

In a lot of ways:

They got lucky

Companies and cultures are all wildly different. Find one that works for you.

(or start one that works for you 🤷‍♂️)

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Thank you all for reading this week's issue.

I appreciate all of you.

This wasn't meant to be grim, but I wanted to paint an honest picture with real expectations. If this message gets through to one person who thought differently then I consider it a massive success.

As always, shoot me an email at swdlodonnell@gmail.com with any questions or just to say hi.

Until next week!