These are the two things that Bill Gates asked for to join Microsoft when he was in his thirties

Today Bill Gates is 66 years old and is already completely retired from Microsoft, dedicating himself more to his outreach and philanthropic activity. Yet 30 years ago, he was a 33-year-old young leader running one of

At the time, if you wanted a job at Microsoft at the height of the personal computer revolution, you only had to demonstrate two qualities. At least, that’s what Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates told NBC’s “” in 1989.

Gates, then just 33 years old and the leader of the already tech giant, said in an interview that the age and experience of job candidates were less important than their enthusiasm for the job and their belief in making it work. computers were more accessible to the average citizen.

“Well, we hire people of any age as long as they’re super energetic and want to make personal computers easier to use,” Gates says, before admitting that most of Microsoft’s new hires at the time were young. “We ended up hiring mostly people fresh out of college.”

Enthusiasm and ability to train, the most demanded by Gates

But, according to Gates, Microsoft also wanted bright but malleable candidates who could be easily trained. “We give them a lot of on-the-job training and put them to work right away,” he says.

In other words, in 1989, Microsoft didn’t exactly expect all job applicants to be as adept at writing software as the company’s co-founders—Gates and Paul Allen developed the programming language that launched Microsoft in 1975. New hires were more expected to be enthusiastic and willing to learn.

Microsoft’s location was also a value for retaining employees

Gates also tells in that interview why the company was based in the Seattle area instead of in Silicon Valley.

First, Gates said, “I grew up in Seattle, so as soon as my company had more than 20 people, I decided to move it here.” (He and Paul Allen co-founded the company in Albuquerque, New Mexico.)

But also, “in California, in Silicon Valley, … a lot happens, but the rumor mill makes it hard to keep secrets and employees change companies,” he says. In Seattle, “we’re able to keep our secrets and, you know, really be alone,” Gates says in the interview.