I have made this mistake exactly twice in my career and the simplest advice I have... I won't categorically say that you should never accept "a lower salary rig

I have made this mistake exactly twice in my career and the simplest advice I have... I won't categorically say that you should never accept "a lower salary right now but when we bring in investment/sales we'll bump it" because, well, sometimes there are companies/projects/founders that you meet and truly believe in and want to be a part of their team. But... the absolutely critical piece of it is to get in writing: - what the triggering events are (investment, revenue thresholds, etc), and make sure to include "hiring other team members for similar roles at higher salaries" as one of the triggers - what the salary bump will be - whether or not there will be retroactive compensation included The first time around I ended up leaving the role before any of the usual triggers would have been activated. Management was toxic, salaries sucked, morale was in the shitter anyway. The second time around I discovered after tendering my resignation that someone who reported to me was making $40k/yr more than I was. It would have been an amicable parting (I was moving on to something that was much better aligned with my interests) but it got pretty sour when I found that out. I got asked a couple times to come back to consult on a few projects and the rate I quoted them (and they begrudgingly accepted) was steep.