Yes, and the high-paying job I left was at a big company that acquired my previous startup. Post-acquisition, the salary was good, the bonuses amazing, but the

Yes, and the high-paying job I left was at a big company that acquired my previous startup. Post-acquisition, the salary was good, the bonuses amazing, but the company was dumb as a bag of hammers, and the job became soul-crushing. Dilbert bosses, communication by powerpoint, pointless projects. It got to a point where I just had to get back to a startup. All but one of the really early employees left for similar reasons, and also to join startups again. That said, I'm not sure I'd make quite the same decision if I couldn't get in very early to a startup that I thought had a really good chance of succeeding.