# So long 110% Three weeks ago I "retired" from corporate work. This follows 24 years as a UX researcher at Google (11 years), Microsoft (11 years), and Amazon (2 years), and as a psychologist before that. This post is mostly an announcement — it's not a retrospective, which I'll save for another time. However, I share a couple of updates on what's next. --- ## Why Now? **Basically, I feel ready**. There is no particular external reason or pressure. I'm 56 years old, and am fortunate to be in good health, with a job that was going well. On the other hand, after 24 years, plus more years of pre-Tech work, I have accomplished "enough" in the corporate world. The challenges in UX looking forward are no longer as exciting to me as they once were. (That's not a commentary on the UX world — only a comment about my perception.) BTW, I'll give particular thanks to my most recent colleagues at Amazon Lab 126, where I was very happy. This decision is not a reflection on them or that position. (I can say the same for my 11 years each at Google and Microsoft.) And I have opportunities apart from corporate work, as I mention next! --- ## What's Next? Many friends have asked me variations of, "What will you do? Don't just quit and watch TV!" My answer: **thanks and don't worry**! For one thing, I have not turned on a TV set in 5 days (maybe longer, I don't even recall). More to the point, I will have 4 primary activities keeping me busy: * **Running the Quant UX Association** — I'll lead both the annual conference, [Quant UX Con online](https://quantuxcon.org), and our new [in-person training classes](https://quantuxcon.org/classes). * **Other community**: I'm an ordained [Zen priest](https://blueheronzen.org/about/teachers/), and last year I received teaching authorization. With corporate retirement, I can also devote more time to that. \==> *Update April 2025*: I am starting the **Tech Community Zen group** for online practice. [**More here**](https://tczen.org)! * **Hobbies**: I have several hobbies. Hobby #1 is boating in the Seattle region and north to British Columbia. We have plans to take our boat all the way to Alaska. * **Catching up on writing**. I've overdue on projects such as new editions of my [quant book](https://quantuxbook.com) or [R book](https://r-marketing.r-forge.r-project.org), and/or new books and articles. (You'll notice I list writing *after* the three "fun" activities above.) --- ## I'm not going anywhere ... but keep in touch! If you haven't already, follow the [Quant UX Association](https://www.linkedin.com/company/quantuxa) and [me on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/cnchapman/) or [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/profile/cchapman.bsky.social). Also, subscribe to this blog (hit the "follow" button above). I hope to hear from you ... or even better to see you at [Quant UX Con](https://quantuxcon.org) or a Quant class! Cheers, \-- Chris *P.S. The cover photo shows me in Shinjuku National Garden in Tokyo, in winter time. Photo credit to my Google colleague, Katie Tzanidou.* ![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1748018480826/b649704b-ea32-47a5-9e2c-afddf0af0040.png align="center")