Yup, I’m leaving Etsy! And I’m writing to say thank you for an exceptional ride. Whether we’ve been collaborating for many years or merely emoji-reacted to each other’s Slack messages once, I appreciate you and every interaction I’ve had during my time here.
The most valuable thing I’m taking away from working at this company (aside from, and I mean this sincerely, the friends I’ve made along the way) is the lens of optimism as a competency. Not just a personality trait, but a skill that can be cultivated. That framing has created the space for me to envision a better future and grow toward it. It enabled me to stay at Etsy for as long as I have <3
For a while, I’d imagined that I would work here until I retired. Is that embarrassing to admit? Yeah maybe lol! But implicit in that imagining perhaps was an assumption that my growth and evolution would be in sync with Etsy’s the whole time. Which doesn’t seem impossible, but I’m feeling drawn to seek more expansive futures, and I’d like to give myself the space to explore that.
I’ll be working with my manager and teammates over the next week and half to wrap things up and hand them off. After that, I’m not sure what’s next, but I’ll find out!
With gratitude,
Yoko
PS: I’d be thrilled to hear from you after my last day! Here’s my contact info:
- +1 917 860 9790
- ysohama@gmail.com (also cc’d)
PPS: If you’re in New York City, primary elections are June 24! Early voting is June 14–22. You have until June 14 to be registered with a party in order to vote in the primaries. Get familiar with ranked choice voting! And DM me if you wanna discuss my mayoral top 5 :P