FYI, moving can be very stressful by itself.
Agreed! That's why baring something like this move, we are in our forever house. Helps that it's awesome in an awesome city, in an awesome location in this city.
See if you can get a start-up bonus to deal with myriad of expenses you get hit with. I am talking beyond just moving expenses.
I believe these companies covering moving expenses, plus (sometimes sizable) sign on bonus is pretty normal at this time.
and negotiate some ownership stake
Most of the places I'm considering, at the stages they are in, offer RSUs and they can be 20-40% of total compensation. But it seems like monopoly money, especially having not been in this type of company before and being in a location where startups are a little less common. I don't think most places yet accept RSUs as payment for rent or food.
Examine and agree with the exit strategy of the startup before you join,
I... I would spend a fair bit of time making sure the key decision makers especially are top notch and well respected
Don't mean this to sound negative at all... Just giving another couple of questions to ponder as you go through your decision process.
This two points is exactly the kind of questions and insight I was looking for. Definitely not just asking for 'good' or 'bad', but both, and also ways to find out as much as possible about these companies too.
As long as you have plenty of personal financial cushion, and a high tolerance for risk, it's definitely worth exploring imho.
My only other question would be how your SO would handle the relative loss of security and the increase in stress and potentially increased time demands that go with this kind of decision. Seen this be a big issue first hand as well...
Definitely having lots of conversations with my better half about the concept of moving and working in a new & different space.
My risk tolerance is typically low, but I have to balance that with doing what I want to be doing vs where I'm at right now. I would be lying if I said possibility of a high $ payout wasn't a factor. But I'm much more focused on finding the right (company) partner and doing something that's exciting and engaging in a more flexible and faster moving space. That's what would be worth the risk for me personally. It seems like what most here are saying is that the startup environment is where that would be, so that's good to hear! SOs risk tolerance is typically higher so that should be OK. This
could significantly move our retirement timeline and/or comfort level either way, so it's something we need to talk about more.
WLB is a big sticking point for me, and my SO really appreciates that, so it's something we'll have to heavily consider going forward. But also figure out how to get real info about this VS HR/Hiring manager sales pitches. What's the point of moving to somewhere like California where we can go on beautiful hikes and I can drive to actual mountains to ski on if I don't have enough personal time for us to enjoy it?
Thanks everyone so far for all of the amazing insights!