Yesterday I received one of the most rewarding compliments of my professional life. It made me extremely happy and I felt grounded in the beauty of what Larry, Sergey, Eric and now Sundar have created. An ecosystem called Google.

I have had the pleasure (and to a certain extent displeasure) of watching several organizations from up close. Organizations big and small, technical and retail, political and philanthropic. I have also had the pleasure of pursuing and landing my dream job at a very progressive and aggressive organization like Salesforce.

All to say that I have never felt that sense of gratitude towards a company, that I feel for Google. I found managers I wanted to work for, or peers I wanted to work with, and maybe leaders I wanted to follow. But it was never the organization as a whole that won my love and loyalty.

Google is made by its people. Not it’s products or benefits. I choose to work at Google, because I love the people who work here. And I believe that the organization plays an important role in hiring such people, bringing them together in a professional setting, and allowing them to bring their true self to the table.

It goes even further in allowing them to be authentic, and influence with that authenticity and passion. There is no template to win at Google. The people here challenge the norms and allows people to lead with the qualities they chose to lead with.

Although I am not a very social person on the weekends, I make it a point to meet several people during my work week. I keep my lunch promises and keep seeking out new folks who can add to my list of Humans @ Google. These are friends, peers and leaders who contribute to my emotional and professional development, without them even knowing about it.

Just yesterday, I met someone for the first time for an intro meeting and left the conversation feeling nourished with some management insights. For lunch I met up with some ex-colleagues and we enjoyed an intense conversation about the car accident I was in earlier this week and how I must report it to Google, excitement about a colleague’s new role and our collective advice on not tying the actions to the outcomes, and a commentary on the performance review process, all in one hour while we munched our yummy salads in an open air cafe. And then I ended my day with a hilarious chat with a peer about being approachable, and the importance of constructive dialogue and forums that allow for such dialogues to ensue.

After a lull of a few years, I finally have a lot of friends. I never thought I’d say that as an adult. I always felt that our ability to make friends dwindles with age. But that rule does not apply when you are here at Google.

Through this post I want to express my gratitude to all the people who make it so worthwhile for me to come to work every day. You are all amazing. And together, we make this company amazing.

In case you are still wondering what was the compliment that made my day – “Keep me on your speed dial for whenever you need me.” I took it as a compliment since I was meeting this person for the very first time and we had chatted for little under an hour.

Here’s to more rigorous, engaging and insightful conversations, at Google.