Maximize for learning and personal growth. Startups provide the best place for this. If you have any dreams of being a founder your self, you need to spend time in trenches.

If you are a "career" man or woman, I still say spend 4-10 years at startups, then go grind with the usual suspects. By spending time at a startup you acquire a diverse/well rounded set of skills that make you an exceptional team member at big companies down the road. Forget an MBA at anything but a top tier university, do startup(s).