Why I left Amazon to farm

Corporate success before 30, a steady paycheck with prime benefits (no pun intended), the ability to work remotely and travel on company dime, the dream, right? To some yes, for a time with me yes, for others - again me - no.

My life has always evolved around some form of work. When we were growing up, we worked the family farm, but this wasn't actual work to us, this was fun and adventure! Once I was old enough, I played softball, tried to do well in school, and farmed with my family. Through college I played collegiate softball, working to make enough of a GPA to keep my scholarship and of course, playing well on the field. Again, this was a form of "work" that was more fun than an actual boring 9 to 5. When the time came to begin deciding on my career, I was in the works of pursuing Olympic Strength and Conditioning, maintaining my love of sports through full time work as a coach. Never in my life had the thought of Amazon crossed my mind until I got a message on LinkedIn from a recruiter.

I thought, sure, I'll apply to just see what will happen. I could always deny the position if I got the job or I could quit after a max of, say, two years. Even while guessing on the math questions and being bluntly honest in my interview, I accepted an entry level Amazon position as a warehouse manager (Level 4, L4). 

As soon as I graduated from college, I went straight to work less than 7 days post-graduation. With an entry level warehouse manager position, I spent my first 2 years on back-half and front-half night shifts, often for 14 hours at a time like all operations. Over those first years I volunteered to work with a new warehouse, traveling to Atlanta on my off days to earn my way from an L4 to an L5 manager. It worked. Perhaps barely, but it got me to the level I needed to transfer to my ideal team.

Over the next 6 months, I was able to market myself, selectively leading various projects to boost my resume and achieve my goal - a position within the elusive Launch Team. This an exclusive group of program managers working alongside Execution teams and Operations to open new warehouses. I joined the Launch org for the middle mile network. I was remote, travelled 75% of the year, with no similar days on the job, working to open these buildings to meet network capacities, often managing multi-million-dollar budgets with a team of 25-50 various stakeholders. Again - "the dream". That paycheck was nothing to smirk at either. 

I found my niche in program management

Here is where I found my stride. I identified my skills, my niche in problem solving, negotiations, and communication. My network grew and I slowly earned trust with my peers and customers, instilling trust and opening doors for unique projects, consulting on design and following through on needs. Soon, I found myself more or less the single threaded leader for these middle mile site types. I quickly moved from L5 to L6 just over a year in role, and less than three months later became a people leader, managing and growing my own team. Before I could blink, my small team had grown to an organization of well over fifteen leaders. 

Then, COVID. Instead of sitting back and relaxing, Amazon project work expanded, and we didn't drop the ball. Whatever the business leaders threw our way we executed. Granted, it may not have been the most beautiful last-minute dive and catches to ever exist, but we delivered functionality, and it worked. To be honest, these years were a bit of a blur. There were times you would be the only person on a plane, one of very few essential workers at hotels and always having to order take-out. With so much travel during these years, I saw places I never would have imagined. I was able to camp and hike the Grand Canyon, road trip through the Southeast instead of flying to all my buildings there, see the Louis and Clark Trail, and stand on the Mexico border in southern California. You had to make the most of these trips in any downtime you could snag while not working. And while I would never regret the adventures Amazon had allowed me to enjoy to this point, the drag of travel and being away from my hometown roots really began to pull at my heart. I grew less and less content at work. 

In 2022, after surviving the years of COVID and at the ripe old age of 26, I snagged the illustrious L7 label, a Senior Manager for Amazon and all North American Middle Mile Launch. Never have I felt so unprepared in my entire life. It was humbling, a blessing, and difficult. Very difficult. My learning curve was steep, learning the ways senior level corporate management, additional and necessary people skills, further delegation requirements. It was an honored seat at the table. However, it was tiring - mentally and physically. I saw people reduced to numbers, performance, and rank - participated in the discussions as required - knowing this was the cost of the corporate ladder. The drain was substantial. This idea of "more for less" and an "ever increasing performance bar" created a feeling of forever running, always a sprint and never time to walk and grow. 

My greatest joy started to become dreaming of being home full time, dreaming of my childhood dream of a full-time farming and running my own business. I found myself avoiding travel when possible, writing small business plans, researching direct consumer sales of beef and buying my first lot of personal pasture. This became my hotel evening routine. 

2023, I met my soulmate. We got married. Our team launched historic numbers of buildings, met record-breaking capacities, designed multiple new build types. Life was beautiful! After bonding over farming, my husband and I opened our LLC, envisioning the joy and ability to run a profitable farm business and bring premium beef to our communities. Hotel evenings and open time on the road became my second job. Weekends were spent at farmers markets, working the field and cattle, and trying to spend quality time with Tyler. At the end of each day, I could feel the pressure of Amazon demands as well as our personal business.

And at the end of that year, I printed my resignation letter. I even had a meeting set with my boss to hand it in, but - when the time came - I couldn't follow through. My gut told me, not yet. Not long afterwards, I was transferred to my peer department for centralization and had the most fun of my entire tenure. It truly was amazing. My team was excellent, peers fantastic. I was still exhausted at the end of each day, but it was worth it to monetarily contribute to our dream while Tyler finished out his military career and worked on our home and farm. We began to discuss me moving full time at the middle of the year.

While me peers and team were great, overall, I was unhappy. I was unfulfilled. My passions lay elsewhere. The pay was substantial, yes. But these were boxes. I was spending over half of my life in hotels, on airplanes, and stressed for cardboard. And for what? Mostly toilet paper orders, Insta pots, and other items for customers. The highlights were when I saw my leaders promote, develop and become stars in their own right on the job. But the multiple times a year we had to reduce ourselves to numbers.... it was not something I wanted long term. And why apply such effort for money when I could apply the same for so much more? Purpose. Passion. Joy. Contentment.

My Resignation from Amazon

So, when my manager announced his departure, this sealed my mind. It was my sign that change was coming to our lovely middle mile Amazonian bubble, and the time was right. The decision where I had been on the fence for so long about 'when' provided an answer. When else would be more perfect than to step away when the team was again be re-organized? So, in April 2025 (on our 2-year wedding anniversary actually), I promoted to customer from the largest logistics company in the world. Eight years total. Countless hours on a plane. Too many nights in hotels. Endless connections and a wealth of experience. 

Some believe me brave for following this passion. Others think I am insane. I quit this 'ideal' job to do what, make no money farming? Farming?!

Yes.

Bluntly - absolutely. 

Becoming the next generation of Young American Farmers

In my final words to my fellow Amazonians I write,

"There are very few careers in this world that people willingly take on a second job to sustain the first. Farming is one of those. Agriculture is a calling, because it must be a passion or else no one would ever do it. "Farming is the only one who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways" - J.F.K. So why am I leaving Amazon to pursue farming? Because this was my end game even joining the company. I remember nearly crying, hearing I got my L7 because it meant I could save and build the future I wanted for my family business.
Without farming I am not who I am meant to be in life. It is where I find joy, purpose, and God. This is my pursuit of happiness, to impact my community with quality food and good company while preserving a family legacy spanning over 150 years. Amazon has helped me reach this point to bring this vision further to life with my husband and expand as much as we can. On my Amazon journey, I share this - I don't want to dwell on the list of Amazonian accomplishments alone. I want this to be a final message to my team and those around me. Remember to find passion in life and encourage passion in others. Have that drive for your people, your direct reports, your customers, your peers. Support and develop them, hold them accountable, and care for them. In the end it's just cardboard boxes (mostly filled with dog food or toilet paper). But through people you make a lasting impact. Don't take that lightly. Have fun, make history.... Oh, and buy local beef. Support your local farmers!"

"Agriculture is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals & happiness." - Thomas Jefferson "

Author: Kelsey Waters, former Amazonian

Date: May 22, 2025