More Bizarre Startup Interview Stories

Still looking for my cultural fit in San Francisco

“I’m so glad we’re getting along,” said the founder while he dry erased the board in the large WeWork conference room for the group waiting outside. “Do you want to have lunch now?”

“Sure, sounds good!” I replied.

I had done my research on this guy to think that if I worked for him and this new startup idea was successful it could really help my career. He was, after all, a successful serial entrepreneur. I knew this was just another part of the interview process and was all about cultural fit.

We walked to a non-descript ramen place that he liked and sat side-by-side at the bar since we would have had to wait for a table. Over our bowls of mediocre ramen, I listened to stories about his wife and how he had so many ideas for startups that he needed someone like me to help him.

After we finished and he paid, he turned to me and asked, “Would you like to go for a walk? I do better thinking and walking anyway.”

“Sure, sounds good!” I kept up my interview act, thinking this was now part two of the cultural fit process.

Zigzagging through Chinatown, he continued to do most of the talking. I heard more personal stories about how he met his wife on a…