Re: Stock Options for Tech Writers

[Paul Branchaud <paul -at- ZKS -dot- NET>]

Dear Anon et al,

One thing to keep in mind (especially with private companies) is that
options are a promise that you will receive company stock when it goes
public. If the company decides to not go public, you have a lovely
promissory note for "vapor stock". If the company is already trading
publicly, the risk is somewhat reduced. Stock options are to salary
negotiation what lottery tickets are to retirement planning. ;-)

As Esther said:
"They range from a cruel joke to an excellent deal. You have to
factor in the company's basic funding and soundness.
It's hard to know whether any company has what it takes
to succeed."

One company I used to work for kept promising that the company would go
public and that employees would get options. It was the cruelest (of many)
way they tried to hold on to staff who felt they were being underpaid (in
some cases justifiably so). Over the course of three years, stock options
were regularly dangled like a carrot to keep many people from jumping ship,
yet the company remained very privately owned. I believe that stock options
have surfaced in some form since I left, but I have no regrets of missing
out.

Esther continued with:
"My take? Stock options should be treated as icing on the
cake, never a substitute for a decent salary to start with."

My current employer offered stock options in addition to my salary, which
was a new experience for me. My existing financial commitments precluded me
from accepting a salary that was considerably lower than my previous job, so
the options were a very pleasant bonus. The fact that I believe that the
stock will be traded publicly and that the company will do incredibly well
leads me to believe that I made the right decision; even if I don't make
money from the options, the experience of working for a startup company has
been worth my while.

Best of luck to Anon, and anyone else who has an opportunity to add stock
options to their benefits package.

Paul
------------------------Nothing Personal------------------------
Paul "RTFM Guy" Branchaud (paul -at- zeroknowledge -dot- com)
Lead Technical Writer, Zero-Knowledge Systems, Inc.

No Duckman, NOT irresistible - there's just enough to intrigue ONE
woman, the rest is up to you. Given your proven record of
mind-bogglingly destructive excess, we felt that giving you any more
than that, would be like giving Michael Jackson a drum of peanut oil and
some cub scouts. Allegedly.
-- Cornfed

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