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"The lower the exercise price for Common Stock, the more money your options will earn you, so it’s in our best interest to make this price really low." - technically, while it's in the employee's interest to have the price be as low as possible, isn't it in the company's interest to have the price be as close to the 409A valuation as possible?

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409A valuations apply to Common Stock, which lack the preferences associated with Preferred Stock (usually sold to investors). As a result, Common Stock is typically priced at a significant discount. It's most certainly in an early stage startup's best interest to keep the Common Stock price low, because it offers more flexibility when incentivizing team members.

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