Been through both IPO and acquisition, but not life changing money. The IPO was a lot of fun. We were still in charge of our own company culture. I wasn't priv

Been through both IPO and acquisition, but not life changing money. The IPO was a lot of fun. We were still in charge of our own company culture. I wasn't privy to all the financial information, but we were told the company was skirting profitability and it would've been just a small push to get there. People worked harder afterwards to try to get to profitability. You also realize stock price has nothing to do with your day-to-day work - it's not in your control. The acquisition was... well, a lot of us didn't stay. For one, a lot of people's RSU's had already vested. The acquisition meant a company cultural change. 1/3 of us left initially, some people were waiting for their RSU's to vest. I think in all, 2.5 years after acquisition, only 1/3 of the original staff is still there. So depending on the exit, really understand what your yourself want out of life and career. It's ok to be selfish in this scenario, as not everything will be in your control, as others are also considering if they want to take large sums of money, even if it's not FYM. For being higher up on the corporate ladder, be honest and truthful to your reports. Don't make promises you can't keep.