Leaving Google, With So Much Gratitude
Yesterday was my last day at Google. Before I left, I sent the following email to a few thousand people on the teams I worked with during my nine years there (2011-2016 and 2021-2024). I received so many heartfelt replies from Googlers who expressed how much my note impacted them, so I hope you’ll benefit from this, too (very little of it is specific to Google). If there’s wisdom in here, assume that it’s something I learned from my many teachers. For anything that doesn’t sound quite right, that’s probably my own misunderstanding.
Hello everyone,
My last day at Google is May 19 and I will be on vacation until then. I’ll check email occasionally, but mostly I’ll be on a remote atoll in French Polynesia and helping the local nonprofit organization develop their strategies for conservation, science, and submarine exploration. So, I just wanted to take a few minutes before I leave to share some of what I’ve learned here and express my sincerest gratitude for all of you.
The short story is that on March 20, my position was eliminated. The longer and more accurate story is that I’ve actually had since December to find a new role (and could have moved with my headcount). I was treated very fairly and am incredibly grateful to my amazing, generous, compassionate managers for their support during this transition period. Thank you!
If you’re wondering why I failed to find a new job here given that I had so much time AND my headcount, then keep reading, as I think some of this might be helpful (based on many conversations I’ve had with other Googlers).
Ultimately, I didn’t find another role over the past six months because what I’m called to do in my life is no longer compatible with any roles at Google (or any other tech company). I’ve always been most excited about generating new ideas and building out a portfolio of projects that can help the planet, regardless of whether technological breakthroughs are required.
“Fall in love with the problem, not the solution” as Astro Teller says.
I care about solving problems facing nature, and tech is simply a means to that end for me. When potentially high-impact projects can’t proceed with the resources they deserve due to lack of alignment with the company’s core focus, then it means I am PERSONALLY out of alignment. So, that’s not Google’s fault, it just means that it’s time for me to leave.
Early Googler Chade-Meng Tan used to give this advice to Nooglers, which I’ve repeated many times and adhered to my entire career at Google.
“I do the Right Thing for Google and the world, and then I sit back and wait to get fired. If I don’t get fired, I’ve done the Right Thing for everyone. If I do get fired, this is the wrong employer to work for in the first place. So, either way, I win. That is my career strategy.”
If that quote resonates with you, listen up.
Though it’s easy to say that Google has changed, the culture has changed, yada yada yada… what’s likely more true is that YOU have changed. Google is a $2T company and it changes slowly. Its mission and primary source of revenue have been unchanged since the beginning. If you’re unhappy with your work and you can’t fix that here, then it’s time to leave. The world will welcome you with open arms. You’ll feel freedom like never before, which also comes with a healthy dose of fear of the unknown (yep, that’s the pill I’m swallowing now). But if that’s not accurate for you, as Sergey always says, “Get back to work!”
It’s not tragic when someone leaves a company or gets let go. It’s certainly not for me. It’s a sign from the universe that there’s a new mission for that person. They might not see it yet, but they will almost certainly look back on the departure with tremendous gratitude within a few years.
I deeply believe that by far the greatest contribution Google has to the world is teaching Googlers to be superstars and then setting them free to do something else that benefits society. I’ve learned more at this company and built a better network than I could ever buy… and they paid me to do this! Someday your time to leave will come as well, and you’ll be able to say, “Thank you Google for preparing me for the next stage of my journey”.
What I’ll miss most are the conversations with Googlers who are longing to deepen their sense of purpose, discover their own identity outside of a corporate label, to find their unique niche, and to learn something new about how they might help this magical world. Over the past few years, I’ve had the incredible honor of meeting 1:1 with hundreds of Googlers who came to me asking for advice on how they could get more involved with nature and climate projects.
Primarily, I offer three things to people in those 1:1s (I recorded fireside chats in Paris and Los Angeles that might help):
No job change to help nature or climate will make you satisfied if you aren’t actually going out into nature to have fun. Go hiking, jump in the ocean, get a bird feeder, and spend more money than you should to travel to biodiverse places (while we still have them).
Your day job can only do so much. Look for volunteer gigs with nonprofits, paid advisor roles with impact-focused startups, etc. Do this outside of Google if possible, since then you don’t need anyone’s permission.
If all else fails, change jobs. If you can’t make it work at Google, there are countless companies working on nature and climate that desperately need someone just like you. Yes, you may need to take a pay cut. But, if you’re unhappy and feeling stuck or bored with life or just uninspired by what you’re doing, then remind yourself that life is far shorter than you expect, and ask yourself, “What is the price of my soul?”. And to avoid any confusion, Google was my dream job for many years, so working here is exactly what many of our souls need.
Wrapping up…
In 2011, I made the difficult decision to move away from Hawaii to join Google. I came as a naive 31-year old with childlike wonder about the possibilities that would open to me by working at such a magical company. I got to work on and launch dozens of world-changing products and features. I can say with amazement that all of my extremely high expectations were wildly exceeded. I am eternally grateful for the doors that Google has opened for me. At 44, I’m still naive and filled with childlike wonder, but I have a bit more well-earned wisdom… with some scars and gray hairs to prove it.
If I could have one wish for Google as I depart...
...it would be that every one of you fights with passion to preserve the culture that Larry and Sergey immortalized in the opening sentence of our Founders' IPO Letter (2004). Please don't forget this. You play a role in upholding these values. It’s not just up to the CEO and SVPs.
“Google is not a conventional company.
We do not intend to become one."
I've never treated my role at Google as a conventional job. I hope you never will either. Life is too short and too full of exciting opportunities to do that. Almost everything that has made my time here magical came as a result of me rejecting what I was “supposed to do” and instead doing what was simultaneously joyful for me and what I felt was right for Google and the world. As crazy as that strategy sounds, I still managed to achieve the success here that I was seeking.
And yes, that strategy even led to "My Favorite Google Memory"... abusing my power as a Google Maps PM to drive Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn to the world premier of "The Internship" in a Street View car. That's me in the driver's seat in the photo below :)
If any of this lands for you, then I hope you’ll connect with me through my website, LinkedIn, or Instagram.
Signing off with infinite gratitude,
Evan
Since I was a Product Manager at Google Maps, I volunteered to drive Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn to the premiere of "The Internship" in a Street View car!
P.S. The final “Calvin & Hobbes” conveys how I feel right now...
The final Calvin & Hobbes. Source: GoComics
