I&#x27;ve been in this situation before and I returned the equity because I felt like there was still a lot of work to do. The company ended up selling for $3 million four years later, so I would have make some cash, but I still feel like I did the right thing because I wasn&#x27;t leaving an angry situation, I felt like they didn&#x27;t need my expertise after they pivoted.<p>Ultimately I think reputation matters the most, but if you feel like you are on solid ground here is what I recommend: The company will probably fail, so sell half the shares for a smallish sum and keep the other half in case they really succeed.