Before getting into the software industry, being paid in stock seemed like a no-brainer, because I looked at tech salaries and thought that you people were all making, at a baseline, well above what it costs to live a comfortable existence, so why wouldn't you play the odds a bit and try for a valuable payout when your stock options mature? Then I got a tech job and realized that, no, most people in tech are still just making ends meet due to the insane cost of living that descends like a dark cloud anywhere a thriving tech scene springs up.