This is why I think the mid-risk / mid-growth segment (that VCs don't like, because their career needs demand being early in the next Facebook) is a better matc

This is why I think the mid-risk / mid-growth segment (that VCs don't like, because their career needs demand being early in the next Facebook) is a better match for top talent. We can grow things at 30% per year reliably up to a fairly respectable scale. (Certainly, the value of a programmer's skill set, with dedicated effort, can grow that fast-- whether salary will grow at that rate is another matter.) But no one can call the Facebooks or Googles reliably. That talent just doesn't exist.