Had a 5% equity stake in a startup that got acquired for ~$20M + earn-out. Actual payout was low due to investor 2x prefs and all kinds of shenanigans, but afte

Had a 5% equity stake in a startup that got acquired for ~$20M + earn-out. Actual payout was low due to investor 2x prefs and all kinds of shenanigans, but after earn-out/taxes it was enough to put a down payment on a nice house. Only took around 2.5 years to pay off. Couldn't 83b at the beginning because I didn't have enough liquid cash, so I ended up paying a lot of taxes in the end. Company could have easily failed / not gotten acquired so I don't blame people who don't exercise early. Currently have a larger stake in a startup that's dying due to COVID killing their industry, so I'll likely leave with nothing. Womp.