If your attitude towards the startup is that cynical, then you shouldn't be working for a startup. Go to bigco where they will pay you lots for doing nothing.
Startups are difficult and need people who want to work hard and sacrifice in exchange for greenfield technical development, high responsibility, and high upside. By all means ask for more equity. But a startup is about the future, not about huge comfy salaries in the present day.
This is especially true given that the economy is now headed back into the toilet. Tide is going out and many startups will die. Those that survive will be those in which neither founders nor employees are unduly greedy.
'If your attitude towards the startup is that cynical, then you shouldn't be working for a startup. Go to bigco where they will pay you lots for doing nothing.'
That's just as cynical. There are bigcos that have fantastic projects AND pay you, as well as startups that offer poor pay and little equity in exchange for lots of hot air.
Unless it's Google or Facebook (or any other mature startup), I'd better be getting more than 2% if I'm being paid less than 50% of standard market rate. Otherwise, the equity is more of a nice bonus than the main selling point.
You're right, many startups will die. All the more reason why people have to be careful about exchanging salary for equity.
If your attitude towards the startup is that cynical, then you shouldn't be working for a startup. Go to bigco where they will pay you lots for doing nothing.
This is just reality. Why make 60-65k at a given startup when you can make market wages at another startup?
But what are the upsides of working for a startup? Working hard and long hours is not really sounding that attractive to me. Maybe it lures kids who want to test their limits?
If your attitude towards the startup is that cynical, then you shouldn't be working for a startup. Go to bigco where they will pay you lots for doing nothing.
Startups are difficult and need people who want to work hard and sacrifice in exchange for greenfield technical development, high responsibility, and high upside. By all means ask for more equity. But a startup is about the future, not about huge comfy salaries in the present day.
This is especially true given that the economy is now headed back into the toilet. Tide is going out and many startups will die. Those that survive will be those in which neither founders nor employees are unduly greedy.