Your company just had its best quarter ever. Your best employee walks in and quits. They got a 20% raise somewhere else. Do you match it?
If someone can be bought for 20%, you haven't lost an employee — you've lost your culture, and matching the offer only proves it was never about the mission.
You had your best quarter ever, and your best employee walks in with a 20% higher offer from somewhere else. Most founders panic. They match. They rationalize it — 'this person is critical, we can't lose them right now.' But here's what act...