Options give us 'regular folk' exposure to private equity, which comes with potential for very high (& improbable) returns. As a salaried employee there's really no better vehicle for this kind of exposure. You'd need to start your own business, or play with leverage - which is dangerous.
That said, the common adage of 'winning the startup lottery' is very true. The likelihood of actually (i) joining early enough, (ii) getting a reasonable grant, (iii) having market conditions work in your favour, (iv) the company growing exponentially for years, (v) you actually being able to stay the 3-4 years to vest enough options, and (vi) a liquidation event happening .... is quite low. Most, if not all, of these factors need to happen together.
That said, the common adage of 'winning the startup lottery' is very true. The likelihood of actually (i) joining early enough, (ii) getting a reasonable grant, (iii) having market conditions work in your favour, (iv) the company growing exponentially for years, (v) you actually being able to stay the 3-4 years to vest enough options, and (vi) a liquidation event happening .... is quite low. Most, if not all, of these factors need to happen together.