If you are thoughtful and careful and quit quickly at a startup that isn&#x27;t going anywhere &#x2F; lead by jerks you can usually pick the right startup.<p>My point is that equity is great and it does everything it is supposed to do (align motivation &#x2F; create a great team spirit &#x2F; reward risk takers).   The problem is people think that equity is magical and you don&#x27;t have to worry about the people giving it to you.   They are the weak link - not the equity itself.