Amazon.com Inc.

11/02/2026 | News release | Distributed by Public on 11/02/2026 12:20

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy: ‘I had to change how I worked, or I was going to be a lousy dad’

When Amazon CEO Andy Jassy and his wife had their first child in late 2000, he knew he would need a different approach to how he managed his career at Amazon and his home life.
"I realized that I had to change the way I worked, or I was either going to have to leave Amazon or I was going to be a lousy dad," Jassy recently said during a fireside chat at Amazon's "Bring Your Parents to Work Day."
At first, he said, he wasn't sure how he would do it.
"I worked so many hours. I was in the office so many hours," he said. "I didn't know how I would do my job without doing that. But like everything else, if you think about it and you rework it and you find ways to be more efficient and you make trade-offs, you can do it."
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy talks to Amazon employees and their parents during a fireside chat at Amazon's "Bring Your Parents to Work Day."
Jassy said it forced him to be more intentional with his time at work-and at home.
"I found that I wasn't always using my time best at work," he said. "I did spend a lot of time in the hallway talking to people, and I wasn't always prioritizing the things that mattered most. It forced me to get more efficient in what I did."
One of the first traditions he adopted came from a manager at Amazon who had young children and a standing date night on Tuesdays with his wife.
"He explained to me that it was just a way to always have time for the two of them and made them better parents, and that sounded like a really good idea, so we adopted that," Jassy said of him and his wife. "We've had a date night every Tuesday night for 30-plus years at this point."

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's career advice: Most people don't land their dream job at 22-and that's okay

Jassy reflected on how his career wandered before he found Amazon-and why he tells young people to stop chasing the perfect first job.

From there, Jassy said he started drawing lines wherever he could: "I just made a decision. I was going to be home every night for dinner, and if I had more work to do, I would do it after dinner. But I was going to be home to be at dinner and put the kids to sleep."
He also set up a weekly breakfast with each of his kids and he would then take them to school-a tradition they've kept up with into adulthood-and found a way to coach his kids' soccer teams, despite the demands of his job.
"I just think some of those things, you just have to decide they're a priority," he said. "They're not black and white. There are times you have to be flexible on them with what's happening in your life and at work, but it's doable if you want to do it."
Next, learn what Jassy says are the three tips for anyone transitioning into a leadership role.
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