Gotta love a word like “normalcy”, and Wikipedia for having an entry on it.
So many things have happened since my last post, so I’ll cut right to it.
1. I left Amazon to go work for Etsy.
Here’s the story. When I was at Amazon, I ran a lunch group and email list called tech chatter. I thought of it a month into my employment at Amazon, and pitched it to my then-boss Aileen Sandridge. (Useless trivia fact #1: her younger sister Manny is friends with my friends from college, and would come party at my house. I didn’t know any of this until I moved to Seattle. Also, Aileen’s husband was the bar raiser on my interview loop for Amazon. Like I said, useless, but damn it, it’s my blog, I can do what I want.) By June 2006, I got my head on straight enough to start it, so Community Tech Chatter was born. We’d talk about whatever was interesting in the community space outside of Amazon. (Useless trivia fact #2: Community Tech Chatter was later renamed WWD Tech Chatter, to include all of World Wide Discovery, the now non-existent organization which had been run by the inspiring Kim Rachmeler.) Around December 2006, I stumbled upon Etsy and fell in love with it. “What amazing items!” and “A tag-based catalog!”.
Ever since I started in community, I always wanted to, one day, be able to do what Kim did so well - manage Community and Personalization at an e-commerce company. Why? Because I love delighting people and fostering strong relationships. I blame my parents. I knew that I was probably decades away from doing so at Amazon, and likely a decade away from doing so at a smaller company. So I kept trucking along, working as a software developer in Community and then, seizing a rare opportunity, became the product/program manager for Personalized Recommendations - a group that was as well known, accomplished, and mystical as any.
So I did that for 6 months and loved every minute of it. I felt like, for someone my age and experience-level, I had happened upon the perfect job. It’s true. I got to think up cool stuff all day long, and help other people build it. I worked normal hours, had dinner with my lovely girlfriend every night, and got paid to dream.
One February morning, Lisa asked me what I wished I was doing right now that I wasn’t doing. I think she wanted me to say something like, “Walking along the beaches of the Amalfi Coast with you”, but instead I said “Run Community and Personalization at Etsy”. I didn’t say Amazon because, really, they would never take me seriously. Nor should they - I’m not qualified. I said Etsy because, other than Amazon, Etsy was the only other company I’d come across that really excited me. I then said, “But I’m several years away from applying, I’m still way too inexperienced.” My two year anniversary of employment at Amazon was a month away.
Lisa wouldn’t hear it. “Go apply! If that’s what you want, you should do it.” And so I did - I sent an email to work@etsy.com, cold call, saying I wanted to work on Discovery features at Etsy. I didn’t expect much considering the lack of a job posting and my lack of experience. Instead, they asked me a few questions over email, interviewed me in person, and voila, I’m hired! Time to move to Brooklyn, I guess.
2. Road Trip!
I was gonna fly. Really, nothing made more sense. It’s quick, it’s comfortable (if you go first class), the movers would take care of everything. But no, Lisa really, really, wanted to drive. I have to thank Mr. John Thimsen, my sixth and final manager at Amazon, for convincing me to go. (For those of you Amazonians keeping score at home, here’s the count: 1) Aileen, 2) Russell, 3) Ian, 4) Ted, 5) Eva for a few weeks, 6) John. Not bad for 2 years.) It was incredible. We drove Seattle to New York, crossing WA, ID, MT, WY, SD, MN, WI, IL, IN, OH, PA, NJ, and finally NY. You can find pictures here: http://flickr.com/photos/dlifson. We saw all kinds of wildlife ranging from prairie dogs to bison, elk to mountain goats, bighorn sheep to deer. We had homemade pie in Hixton, WI (Blue Collar Cafe, highly recommended. Try the habanero flavored sweet jellies, too). We watched the sun set on Mt. Rushmore. We had an incredible dinner in Minneapolis. We got to see our dear friend Jake Kalberer, who is making his own way back to normalcy. We drove 3500 miles in 10 days, mostly driving in the day. One tip - don’t bother taking the northern route until after Memorial Day; too many parks and roads are closed. Maybe another time we’ll see Glacier National Park, Lewis and Clark Caverns, Yellowstone National Park.
photo credit wallyg, via Flickr
3. Quick, get a sublet!
My lease for my North Park Slope (Brooklyn) apartment doesn’t begin until June 1st, which gave me the pleasure of having a truly authentic “Welcome to New York, buddy” experience. First, the apartment I found on Craigslist while in my Minneapolis hotel room turned out to be a woman’s living room, complete with ancient and uncomfortable sofa bed. Rejecting that for the sake of my body, I’ve been sleeping on a 1.5″ thick camping mattress and some blankets. Turned out to be a good idea - one night I was reading in bed and discovered a small red insect crawling over the pages of my novel. Yes sir, my first NY bedbug. I think I forgot to mention the rent was $1425. Did I mention the great location?
No NY moving experience is complete without sordid tales of relocation pain. After signing my lease and handing over $10,500 up front (Jesus!), I ask if I can move in early since she’s vacating the apartment in a few days. She tells me I can move in the week of May 26th, at no cost. Great! I phone my moving company, Star Moving, and pass along the good news. This week, I’m notified that the driver left Seattle on Saturday. Hmm, 10 days before the 26th. It could work, since I was told to expect 7-13 days delivery time. On Tuesday the 20th, I get a call from the driver, saying he’ll be in Brooklyn on Thursday (the 22nd) and would like to schedule a delivery time. What? 5 days? That’s not good.
I dash back to my computer and fire off an email to my landlord. Could I move in earlier? She comes back the next day with, no, actually you can’t move in any earlier than may 30th. Disaster. What can the driver do? Circle Manhattan Island for 8 days? Thankfully, Kathy Martindale over at Star Moving stepped in and saved the day. Instead of charging me the $1500 minimum fee for putting my stuff back into storage, she took care of the whole thing at no cost to me! Did I mention how great Star Moving’s customer service was? Still, fingers are crossed because it’s not the 30th yet and I still don’t have my stuff or keys to my new apartment.
Where was Lisa in all of this? She and I had decided it was best for her to go to Italy to visit her friend Eliana, who was going through some tough times and really could use a friend. Lisa and Eliana are soulmates, platonic variety. Plus, it was cheaper to buy her a non-stop round-trip ticket to Milan ($787) than find a 1 month sublet for two people since she’d be staying and eating for free at Eliana’s family’s house. Boy, do I miss her. I must say, distance does make the heart grow fonder.
photo credit Amit Gupta, via Flickr
4. Etsy, reincarnate
Amazing. That’s the word that ran through my head so many times my first week at Etsy. Sometimes in wonder, sometimes in astonishment. Like I’d heard so many times, things change quickly in a startup. What I was hired to do (own the buying experience on Etsy) was not what needed to be done, so I stepped into that void. So now, for better or worse, I am managing all of product management at Etsy, meaning I am the owner of the Product Roadmap and Product Prioritization. Subject to approval by the CEO and COO, of course. And now I’m expected to manage people, which is kind of like being thrown into a tsunami and expecting to learn how to swim and surf. And you know what, it’s awesome. I can do this. And all the while, we’re going to revolutionize e-commerce.
5. The future, and beyond!
Right. So I’m going to force myself to post regularly, because I’m convinced that writing regularly will make the writing I need to do for work come easier. I don’t know what I’ll be writing about, but I’ll do my best to keep it relevant.
In the meantime, some Etsy bits:
1. I’m using Summize to track all twitter messages containing the word Etsy, so if you want to leave me a surprise, drop me a line.
2. Lisa and I gave away all of our plates, bowls, and glasses before moving. I’m really excited about the idea of buying a whole new set on Etsy, either pre-made or via Alchemy. Alchemy, by the way, is brilliant and a game changer.
3. My dear friend Abby Taylor is knitting me a “thinking cap” that I can put on when I need to think. It’s going to say “thinking” on it. I love the handmade lifestyle and I’m constantly impressed by what people can make with their own talents and creativity. I had originally put the request out via Alchemy and received 9 bids. Pretty good!
4. Maria Thomas, our COO, just started on Monday, and she’s fantastic. She is the voice of experience, wisdom, and authority that Etsy needed. This train is just getting started.
5. I’m looking to hire another product manager and a UI designer. If you know anybody, send them my way please!
OK, I’m done. See you tomorrow.