The people — the co-workers — and the chance to work with incredible folks again, whether by hiring them or working with them in his own company. But once you start building your own company, Satya says it's hard to imagine working on someone else's dream unless it aligns so deeply that it feels like your own.
More from this episode
Satya worked at massive, established companies and is now building from zero. Asked what he misses, he points to the co-workers — and notes he could get a chance to work with them again if he hires incredible folks into his own company. He can't name a single thing he'd never go back to, but his bigger reflection is on ownership: "once you start building your own company it's a bit hard to imagine working on someone else's dream, unless it aligns so deeply that it feels like your own." The sense of ownership and of creating something from scratch is, in his words, so beautiful — which is why so many founders exit a company and a few years later are building something new again.