Amazon CEO: While you’re still in your 20s, figure out what you ‘don’t’ want to do

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said people in their 20s should spend more time figuring out what they “don’t” want to do, instead of feeling pressured to know their exact career path.

CNBC Make It reported that, speaking on the “How Leaders Lead with David Novak” podcast, the 57-year-old executive shared that many young adults, including his children, believe they need to have their lives figured out by the time they are in their 20s. However, he noted that he thinks that’s not how it works in real life.

Mr. Jassy, who joined Amazon in 1997 at 29, said he worked in product management, entrepreneurship, sports casting, and sports production. He also spent time coaching his high school soccer team, working at a retail golf store, and even went into investment banking.

While none of those paths became his long-term career, they helped him understand what he didn’t enjoy—and that made it easier to figure out what he actually wanted.

He noted that figuring out what you don’t want to do actually helps you figure out what you want to do. “I do feel like one of the lucky parts for me was that I tried lots of things and was able to sort for myself what appealed to me and what didn’t,” he said.

He noted that “things that you can control,” like being a good learner, a hard worker, and being reliable and trustworthy, outweigh being good at every single thing you try. “It’s actually amazing to me how often people don’t. I worked hard at those things over time,” he said.

“I think your attitude is an embarrassing amount of your success or lack thereof,” he added. /TISG

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