Sure. Markets work slowly and capriciously. Part of the deal of taking a salaried job is that you get a paycheck now instead of waiting until you've built somet

Sure. Markets work slowly and capriciously. Part of the deal of taking a salaried job is that you get a paycheck now instead of waiting until you've built something and seeing who's ready to buy it and how much. Even if in the steady state someone will definitely buy it for $5, it's nice to put bread on the table today instead of maybe in a year or two. As with all financial transactions of the form "I'll trade your risky profit in the future for a low-risk profit now," you lose some money, and that money goes to the entity absorbing the risk for you.