This is true on some level, but I can see things from his perspective too. You're getting to work with smart, talented, experienced people, making big decisions

This is true on some level, but I can see things from his perspective too. You're getting to work with smart, talented, experienced people, making big decisions that have ramifications in a world-wide industry, mentoring and conversing with juniors, and feeling the gratitude of customers whose lives you've made better. And maybe some of it just the sheer joy of winning. Who knows? Here I am on a Friday night, casually hanging out on my laptop - between Reddit and Hacker News and watching work tech talks and looking at GitHub issues. A new bug came in. I know several companies depend on me to fix it. It's not urgent, but I'm taking a look at it. I guess it feels good to be useful to other people (looking at the bug), and to feel like part of something bigger than you (the tech talks).