The way I measure my life is 'Am I better than I was last year?'

Our mission of empowering every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more is really a look back to the very creation of Microsoft.

Our industry does not respect tradition - it only respects innovation.

Many companies aspire to change the world. But very few have all the elements required: talent, resources and perseverance. Microsoft has proven that it has all three in abundance.

Like anyone else, a lot of what I do and how I think has been shaped by my family and my overall life experience. Many who know me say I am also defined by my curiosity and thirst for learning. I buy more books than I can finish. I sign up for more online courses than I can complete. I fundamentally believe that if you are not learning new things, you stop doing great and useful things. So family, curiosity and hunger for knowledge all define me.

Technologies will come and go, so you need to be able to both ask and answer the question: What do you do as a company, why do you exist?

What was true then and what is true now is that we create technology so others can create more technology.