At least in my eyes: The downside risk is already so high in a startup that a marginal decrease is simply not worth the loss of the upside. About 90% will fail

At least in my eyes: The downside risk is already so high in a startup that a marginal decrease is simply not worth the loss of the upside. About 90% will fail. You should really be assuming that your options are worth basically zero. Basically zero ~= Basically zero with better downside protection. For high performing tech companies - you absolutely don't want the loss of upside in the current market. I think there is some legitimacy to this in a long-term company that experiences boom and bust cycles, though - things that come to mind for me are airlines, auto manufacturing, agriculture, etc.