I sent a direct email to a recruiter there, stating I was looking for a new job and was interested in Uber. He almost instantly replied, offering to connect on the phone the following morning to discuss what I was looking for. We spent about 20 minutes on the phone trying to identify my strengths and career aspirations, and we concluded that a role in growth would be a good fit.

I was quitting my job two weeks later and am on a working visa, so I stressed the urgency and requested the process be as fast as possible. They accommodated this.

They sent me a coding challenge right after the phone call. It involved multiple choices of different APIs to use and a task to implement. I completed it in the form of a Backbone app with a Ruby backend. I worked on this over the weekend (which I found genuinely enjoyable) and submitted it on Monday.

On Tuesday, I had an interview scheduled. Knowing I was taking a plane on Friday, they happily scheduled the interview for Thursday.

I spent about 4 hours there, split across four different types of interviews: algorithms, problem-solving, live coding, and front-end. All interviews were conducted by two interviewers each, all from the growth team. They all seemed very enthusiastic about the team and the company. The interviews, despite being quite stressful, were actually a lot of fun.

The fourth interview was a wrap-up with the team's manager. He reassured me, stating that everyone really liked me and they would extend an offer. I would then negotiate the offer details with the recruiter. We then chatted casually about his background, mine, and other random topics. He gave me a quick tour of the office and introduced me to people we encountered. That was a really positive experience and made me feel valued.

I originally contacted Uber because I happened to have a recruiter's email, but wasn't especially drawn to the company. I was generally aiming for larger startups (Airbnb, Square, and Facebook were my other main targets), but this interview process genuinely made me want to work for Uber.

The next morning, I spoke with the recruiter on the phone while waiting for my flight. It was another pleasant, casual conversation where he asked about my expected offer. The focus seemed to be on finding a role that would make me happy. He clearly explained the stock options plan, etc.

We reached an agreement, and he informed me that the offer would be processed and sent to me via email the following week. I immediately called all other pending offers and interviews and cancelled them. The remainder of the week was spent handling my visa, and everything went smoothly.

I've been at Uber for over a year now and remain convinced that I made the best career choice!

Find the longest word in a grid of random letters. Each consecutive letter has to be next to the previous one.