Which illustrates the original point: that scenario -- generous severances when the company is going out of business -- is incredibly rare.  A much more likely scenario is your options become worthless and you&#x27;re laid off.  If you can leave a bad environment, I recommend leaving ASAP instead of letting the golden handcuffs keep you -- unless the golden handcuffs promise a huge return, and there&#x27;s little or no doubt about getting that return.