It was a very hard decision.
Reasons
professional growth
At Yext I am confident that I will continue to grow my skills in
- analyzing a problem, breaking it down into doable chunks, and then attacking these chunks at a good pace
- getting a big-picture idea without sacrificing detail and being flexible with the do as you go, iterative approach
- being able to be productive even when facing uncertainty
- taking ownership, as it is of greater importance to the success of the company, which is linked to the company size being very small (< 100 engineers)
- startup business smarts in case I work for a startup again in the future, or start my own startup
personal growth
- due to the nature of NYC with a very fast, busy, even unforgiving nature, this would force me to smarten in areas of street sense, knowing my way around / flexibility in adjusting to things like delayed subways, unpredictable events, unpredictable people
- it’ll be a 360 compared to Ithaca, NY. This will be stressful, but in a good way. I need to learn to adapt now so I can continue to adapt throughout the rest of my life. I don’t want to settle down too early
location
- dance workshops with the Mint Dance Company are 10 minutes away from the office!
- diverse peoples and cultures – plenty of ways to observe and get better at character development
- Broadway shows. Art galleries. Parks. People watching. Music concerts.
- Friends. I currently have 2 wonderful people I plan on living with, there’s a lot of Cornell alumni in the city.
- easy to chill with people my age because of the nearby college scenes of columbia and nyu etc
- diversity of industries and jobs
- plenty of churches to choose from
timing
- it’s likely that I won’t be in NYC forever, and the west coast is a good bet as to where else I’d live
- plan on someday ending up in LA for entertainment design / getting my foot into the animation industry
- plan on someday ending up in Seattle
- personally prefer to start on the East Coast for as long as it makes sense
- I’m young, single, fresh out of college. NYC seems like a great place to be.
Looking Forward
These few months have truly been surreal. I’ve wrestled with this decision for a while and truly believe that this is the appropriate choice for not only my short term goals, but the long term as well. It’s not an easy one, and I know that in the future I may wonder if I made a mistake. So I want to thank those of you who have supported me throughout this entire process, and ask for more kindness in the future in these times of doubt, to be reminded of why this choice was right in so many ways, and to persevere.
Adventures 