> Shouldn't there be some kind of formula for this kind of thing?
It's not like science or math. There are too many subjective issues at work -- a relatively new company in a fluid marketplace, issues of personal psychology, guessing how applicants will respond to the prospect of options. Any fixed formula or policy would likely be invalidated by events in a short time. It reminds me of the old saying, "The first casualty of battle is the battle plan."
> I only bring this up because, after personally seeing or being on the losing end, I would never accept the salary haricut for options again unless I could somewhat reliably gauge them, probabilistically.
Yes, and this is because you have experience. A younger applicant might not understand the issue as well, or might have heard a statistically improbable but dramatic story of someone becoming rich on options.
From the management side, they might guess at the age and experience level of the applicants, and adjust their pitch accordingly.
> Paul, thanks for all the really cool stuff you've done over the years.
It's not like science or math. There are too many subjective issues at work -- a relatively new company in a fluid marketplace, issues of personal psychology, guessing how applicants will respond to the prospect of options. Any fixed formula or policy would likely be invalidated by events in a short time. It reminds me of the old saying, "The first casualty of battle is the battle plan."
> I only bring this up because, after personally seeing or being on the losing end, I would never accept the salary haricut for options again unless I could somewhat reliably gauge them, probabilistically.
Yes, and this is because you have experience. A younger applicant might not understand the issue as well, or might have heard a statistically improbable but dramatic story of someone becoming rich on options.
From the management side, they might guess at the age and experience level of the applicants, and adjust their pitch accordingly.
> Paul, thanks for all the really cool stuff you've done over the years.
You're most welcome. Here's my latest article: http://arachnoid.com/IPython