I suppose its a lesson for them in how real risk works. They traded in an opportunity with a high chance of making 200k for an opportunity with a very low chance of making 1mm+ and a very high chance of making much less than 200k. They ended up probably statistically somewhere in the realm of average which in reality should be of no surprise - its just unfortunate that it seems they didn't take many safeguards for when the most likely scenario occurred.
I think there is an unfortunate side to the way the tech media has turned into a machine at pumping out stories about all the big hits in that it gives a very skewed perspective of how rare true sustainable startup success is. That doesn't mean that it isn't worth pursuing but I think doing things like cashing in your 401k is incredibly foolish to be totally honest. I dont blame people for taking big risks being that most big success comes with big risks but make sure you are completely ok with what big risk truly means.
Very true, when I tell people I am a software developer they either assume I live in a mansion with 5 ferraris or that I eat nothing but ramen and sleep in my parents basement and not much in between. Sadly the second is probably closer to the truth.
This is the lesson of the professions in general. Med school has a better ROI than both law and business school, but the doctors and lawyers fall out of the income distribution around the top 1% to 0.5%. Above that, it's all bankers, most with MBAs.
I think there is an unfortunate side to the way the tech media has turned into a machine at pumping out stories about all the big hits in that it gives a very skewed perspective of how rare true sustainable startup success is. That doesn't mean that it isn't worth pursuing but I think doing things like cashing in your 401k is incredibly foolish to be totally honest. I dont blame people for taking big risks being that most big success comes with big risks but make sure you are completely ok with what big risk truly means.